A Dangerous Affair
by krissh
Summary: Hermione was terrified. The rage in Draco's eyes was unmistakable; He looked like he was ready to kill someone. When she did not answer, he slammed her arms above her head, pinning her to the wall. "How dare you mock me like that," he snarled in her face. "You filthy mudblood."
1. Mockery

**A confrontation in an abandoned corridor turns into something much more for Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy.**

Potions. At the moment it was one of Hermione's favorite subjects, along with Transfiguration and Charms of course. Even she had surprised herself by taking such a liking to the class, but since Professor Slughorn had taken over for Professor Snape, she no longer dreaded it. Of course Harry was at the top of the class with his borrowed Potions book, but that wouldn't discourage her from enjoying herself.

She took a seat at Harry and Ron's table and opened her textbook quietly. Draco Malfoy was sitting across the aisle from her, currently torturing a fat, brown spider to death. She scrunched her nose disapprovingly at him before letting her hair fall along her face like a curtain between them. Hopefully he would kill it soon and put the poor thing out of its misery.

"Catch, Granger!" Malfoy said suddenly, throwing the spider at her. It landed on her shoulder and she instinctively screamed, causing dozens of curious faces to look her way.

After thrashing about in her seat and swatting at her robes, she saw the creature fall to the floor and immediately brought her foot down on it.

"What is all this commotion?" Professor Slughorn inquired as he entered the classroom.

Everyone else was wondering the same thing as they settled back into their desks.

"I saw a spider," Hermione said, shooting a deathly glare across the aisle at Malfoy.

"Very well," Slughorn said, shrugging off the excuse. "Everyone turn in their books to page 113. Now, who can name a potion that causes its drinker to feel giddy, light-hearted, and excited?"

Hermione's hand was the first one in the air.

"Yes, Ms. Granger?" Slughorn said, a pleased smile crossing his face.

"There are several potions that might have this effect, including but not limited to Love Potions and the Elixir of Euphoria."

"You are absolutely correct," he said with a nod of his head and a smile. "Now, who can tell me what common ingredient can be found in both in a Love Potion and the Elixir of Euphoria? How about you, Mr. Malfoy?"

Draco's face fell and he glanced around nervously. It was obvious that he did not have the slightest clue as to the answer. Professor Snape would have never called on him without his hand raised.

"Erm..." he said, glancing eagerly at his books.

A smug smile crossed Hermione's face and she raised her hand once more.

"Very well, Ms. Granger?" Slughorn said, shifting his attention from Draco.

"Anyone who did the homework assignment knows that the answer is Shrivelfig," she answered confidently.

"Right you are," the professor smiled. "Take ten points to Gryffindor!"

Hermione cut her eyes over at Malfoy and smiled. He may have managed to frighten her with the spider, but she had had the last laugh after all.

"Today you will each be making a potion of your choosing," Professor Slughorn announced to the class, "and it must include Shrivelfig."

The look on Draco's face was murderous as he watched Hermione flip her hair confidently and make her way to the shelves at the back of the room to get started on her potion.

By the end of the class, Hermione had managed an acceptable Love Potion that bubbled light blue in her cauldron. Harry, as usual, had created a perfect concoction: He had chosen the Elixir of Euphoria. Ron, on Harry's other side, was grumbling miserably over his cauldron of brown goop, fearful of what Professor Slughorn would have to say about it.

As he did every class, Professor Slughorn made his way around the room, scrutinizing everyone's products.

"Very nice, Ms. Brown. It could have used one more Ashwinder Egg.

Exceptional as usual Mr. Potter - a perfect Elixir.

Mr. Weasley... erm... perhaps you should have asked Mr. Potter for help," he said as he made his way around the desks.

"Nice, Ms. Granger," he said as he peered into her cauldron. Her chest swelled with pride as he made his way to Malfoy's desk next.

"Mr. Malfoy, it looks like you added too many rose thorns and not enough porcupine quills. Not your best work," he said, shaking his head.

Again Hermione smiled. It was so nice to see Malfoy put in his place every now and again. He had a powerful family and a sinister father, but he was not as intelligent as everyone thought him to be. She could feel the dangerous glare he was giving her, as though it were tangible, but she kept her head high.

When no one was looking, Hermione retrieved a fat vial from her bag and filled it with the blue potion; As inconspicuously as she could, she stuffed the tube back into her bag and cleaned up the rest of her things. It was a bad habit she had formed as a result of her friendship with Harry and Ron; They bottled their potions from class and stored them in a trunk in Gryffindor tower, just in case they should ever need one of them. They were now up to eight or nine different potions, all distinctly labeled, and Hermione would add this Love Potion to the collection. She looked up just in time to see Harry slipping a similar vial into her bag and she hid a smile. Apparently she would be adding _two_ potions to the trunk.

"I'll catch up with you two in a bit," Hermione said to her friends before sliding out of the classroom.

Hermione first stopped in the Gryffindor common room to drop off her things and to store their new potions before heading to the Great Hall for dinner. She brushed her hair and pulled it into a ponytail before heading back downstairs. She was almost surprised that she did not run into Harry or Ron along the way.

She made her way alone down a long corridor, her footsteps clicking softly against the stone floor, all the while a confident smirk plastered on her face. She was still thrilled about Draco Malfoy's embarrassment in Potions and she held her chin up victoriously.

_We'll see if he ever thinks about throwing another spider at me_, she thought.

She was so absorbed in her thoughts that she did not hear the quickening footsteps behind her until it was too late. She felt someone grab her and push her violently toward the wall; Her head cracked against the stone and she found herself face to face with the blonde villain she had been thinking about only moments ago.

"Who the bloody hell do you think you are?" Draco spat in her face.

Hermione was terrified. The rage in Draco's eyes was unmistakable; He looked like he was ready to kill someone. When she did not answer, he slammed her arms above her head, pinning her to the wall.

"How dare you mock me like that," he snarled in her face. "You filthy mudblood."

Hermione's cheeks were red as though Draco had slapped her. She was angry. She was embarrassed. How had he managed to catch her off guard like this?

No one ever used this corridor, which was the main reason Hermione chose it. True, it was a bit longer than any other route to get to the Great Hall, but she enjoyed the peacefulness of the abandoned corridor. But how was it that Draco knew where she would be? And alone? Perhaps he had simply seen her passing and decided to follow her... but then, why was he so far away from the dungeons?

She contemplated spitting in his face, as it was only a few inches from her own, but changed her mind. It was too cliché. Besides, Draco might enjoy it. What would he hate more than being spat on? Kneeing him in the groin was a promising idea, but their forms were too closely pressed together for her to gain access.

'Damn,' she thought.

Whatever she was going to do, she needed to do quickly. Her wrists were beginning to ache from the hold Draco had on her, and there was no way for her to reach her wand in her back pocket. She couldn't push him away because he was too strong. But perhaps...

What Hermione did next was a surprise even to her. It was a split second decision, and she hoped it would be enough of a distraction that she could break free of his hold. As quickly and as hard as she could, Hermione pushed herself forward and slammed her lips against Draco's.

His mouth was hard and unyielding, but the kiss provided the diversion Hermione had been hoping for. She felt Draco's grip slacken on her wrists and she shoved him away, hard. Turning on her heel, she broke into a sprint.

Behind her she could hear Draco cursing and gagging in revulsion and she couldn't help but smile proudly to herself as she rounded the corner. That would show him.


	2. The Abandoned Corridor

Hermione skidded into the Great Hall, her heart still racing. She immediately found Harry, Ron, and Ginny sitting in their usual places and she hurried to take a seat by Ron, her back facing the Slytherin table. She did not want to see Malfoy when he entered the hall, and she certainly did not want to spend the entire time looking at him. If she was lucky he would go to the infirmary...

But she was not so lucky.

"Don't look now, Hermione, but Malfoy is staring at you," Harry whispered over his plate. From his seat he could easily see Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle at the Slytherin table.

Hermione's heart dropped. "Does he look angry?"

Ginny smirked. "The phrase 'if looks could kill' comes to mind."

She groaned.

"He's probably still pissed off about Potions," Ron offered.

Harry agreed. "But you can't deny the foul git deserved it."

Hermione smiled weakly.

"What did you do to him?" Ginny asked curiously, being the only one in the group who had not been in their Potions class.

"It was nothing really," Hermione shook her head. "I simply answered Professor Slughorn's question."

Harry and Ron both burst into laughter.

"Oh, but you should have seen his face!" Ron howled. "Slughorn called on him and he didn't know the answer; Come to think of it, I'm glad he didn't call on me, because I didn't know either..."

"And Hermione..." Harry picked up, joining in Ron's enthusiasm, "told everyone that it was such a simple answer; '_Everyone knows that_'..."

"I did not say that," Hermione snapped, her cheeks flushing red. "I said that anyone who did the homework would know the answer..."

Ginny snorted. "That explains why Ron didn't know either."

They all laughed.

"Is he still looking over here?" Hermione asked in a hushed voice.

"No," Ginny said, shaking her head. "He's gone back to eating."

Hermione swallowed hard and chanced a glance over her shoulder to where she knew Malfoy would be sitting. He still had an unfriendly scowl plastered on his face, and his cheeks were slightly pink as though he had been running. She watched him for a moment as he toyed with the food on his plate, wondering with horror how she had actually made herself kiss him, when he cut his eyes at her.

Her heart sank and she caught her breath. Ginny had been entirely correct about the phrase 'if looks could kill'. In fact, if they had not been surrounded by hundreds of people, Hermione was almost certain that he would _actually_ kill her. Their gazed remained locked for a long, uncomfortable moment, before Hermione turned back to face her friends.

"Are you alright, 'Mione?" Ginny asked. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

Hermione chuckled nervously. "I'm fine; Just not feeling well."

"Do you need to go to the hospital wing?" Ron asked worriedly, ready at a moment's notice to accompany her.

"No, I've just... remembered an assignment I forgot to start on," she stammered, trying to rid herself of the feeling of her lips against Malfoy's hard, unyielding ones.

"If it's Potions, make sure you get it done," Harry said encouragingly. "I want to see the look on Malfoy's face when you take the mickey out of him again."

...x...x...x...

_DPOV_

Draco tossed and turned in his bed that night. Neither his precious, silk pajamas nor his imported sheets could soothe him in any way or rid him of the images from that day. He had taken a long bath in an attempt to relax, but it was useless; His mind continued to reel with unforgivable thoughts.

_Disgusting. Touching her had been bad enough but kissing her... I'd rather die than suffer a fate so horrible. _

_What would father think? No, father should never know. He would as soon disown me for even speaking to the wench, even though the kiss was not my fault._

_Kiss? Bloody hell, she kissed me. What the bloody hell is wrong with her? How dare she do such a thing? How disrespectful... What if she thought I enjoyed it? Gods, no! No one, especially Granger, could be that dense..._

He groaned and pulled his pillow over his face. The only thing he could see were Hermione's deep brown eyes staring at him as their lips met, trying to break him.

"Bloody fucking hell," Draco mumbled.

From somewhere across the room, he heard a voice.

"Drake, everything alright mate?" It was Blaise.

He thought about not answering, but it was obvious he was awake. No one could fall asleep that fast.

"Just thinking," he grumbled.

"Well, let me know if you want to think aloud," he offered.

Draco squeezed his eyes shut and cursed himself.

_No one can find out about this. No one. This is your secret to know and suffer through._

_Yours and Granger's._

He groaned again.

...x...x...x...

Weeks passed and Hermione religiously avoided the abandoned corridor where she had kissed Malfoy. She could not risk being caught off guard again; There was no telling what Malfoy might do to her. He had said nothing to her since their last encounter, and quite frankly, Hermione wanted to keep it that way.

But old habits die hard, and it was not long before there was another incident in their Potions class.

"Who can tell me what the Polyjuice Potion does?" Professor Slughorn asked.

Of course, Hermione's hand was the first in the air.

"Yes, Ms. Granger," he said with an approving smile.

"The Polyjuice Potion can be used to temporarily transform the drinker into someone else," she answered proudly. She, Harry, and Ron had had more than enough experience with the Polyjuice Potion for her not to know everything about it. "It may only be used for human transformation."

Professor Slughorn smiled at Hermione's response. "Right you are, Ms. Granger. Take 10 points to Gryffindor!"

Hermione's chest swelled with pride as she sank back into her chair. As she did so, she noticed a neatly folded piece of parchment on the desk in front of her; It had not been there moments ago. She looked around curiously, but Harry (who was to her right) seemed completely oblivious to it.

"Ms. Granger, are you also familiar with the ingredients required to make the Polyjuice Potion?" Professor Slughorn questioned.

Hermione fought a laugh, and she also heard Harry and Ron snicker to her right.

"Yes sir," she affirmed.

"What would be the most crucial ingredient in this potion?" he continued.

It was too easy. "A bit of the person you want to turn into, such as a hair."

"Absolutely correct," he said happily. "I wanted you all to be thinking about the Polyjuice Potion because your homework assignment will be to write a thorough essay on it and have it turned into me by next week.

The potion we will be making in class today is much less complicated, and takes much less time to make: An aging potion. Please, everyone, turn in your books to page 281."

As the students shuffled around, many of them heading to the closet at the back of the room, others setting up their cauldrons, Hermione slowly opened the folded parchment. In the middle of the page was a crudely drawn figure with the face and tail of a cat wearing Hogwarts robes: She could only assume that the drawing was a depiction of herself from their second year and that the artist was Draco Malfoy.

Sure enough, she glanced over and saw a smug look on Malfoy's face. Infuriated, she crumpled the parchment into a ball and threw it at his head. It struck true, and she hurried to the back of the room just in time to avoid a string of colorful curse words coming out of Malfoy's mouth.

"Why did you throw that at Malfoy?" Harry asked when she returned.

"Because he's a foul git," she answered simply.

Harry shrugged. "Reason enough."

Hermione worked in silence, concentrating on the directions in her textbook. She added the ingredients, careful to stir only the amount of times as directed before pausing to check her progress. Harry, as always, was ahead of everyone, following the penned-in instructions in his used book. Hermione turned up her nose at his perfectly developing potion and focused on her own.

"Ten minutes left in the class period," Professor Slughorn announced as he made his way through the aisles.

"Good work Ms. Patil," he said. "Very nice Ms. Brown. Excellent work, Mr. Potter, as usual."

And then it was time to pack up their things. As usual, Hermione slipped an empty vial out of her bag and filled it with her Aging Potion. As quickly as she could, she tucked the vial back into her bag and cleaned up her things.

"Are you coming with us to the Great Hall?" Ron asked as they headed out of the classroom.

"I'm just going to drop my things off in the Common Room," she assured him. "I'll catch up with you two."

At the end of the corridor, they went their separate ways and Hermione hurried toward the Gryffindor Common Room. She walked briskly, her growling stomach egging her on. She had only eaten a small lunch, and it had been a very, very long day. It might have been for that reason that she found herself in the abandoned corridor she had been so avidly avoiding, and it might have been for that reason that Draco Malfoy was able to sneak up on her... again.


	3. Draco's Desire

"Like my drawing, Mudblood?" he asked from behind her.

Hermione did not respond, but kept walking. Maybe if she ignored him, he would leave her alone.

"I'm talking to you... Are you deaf as well?" he snapped.

She walked quicker, her head down. She only had to make one more turn and down another corridor before she made it into well-traveled territory again; If she could make it there, she would be in the clear.

Draco's footsteps also quickened, matching her own and she could feel him getting closer. She did not have to look over her shoulder to know that his legs were much longer than hers and allowed him to cross a much larger space much quicker than she could hope to. Her heart was sinking.

What would he do to her if he caught up? She would simply have to defend herself and explain it all to the headmaster later. She clutched her wand beneath the sleeve of her robes, ready to use it should she need to.

And then, it was like déjà vu.

Draco grabbed her and pushed her against the wall. Although she had tried to prepare herself, she still hit her shoulder against the unforgiving stone, and she could feel it throbbing. His hand rested on her neck, not so powerfully as to choke her, but enough to make her considerably uncomfortable.

"When I choose to speak to you, you'd do well to answer me, you _filthy_ mudblood," he snarled in her face.

"Just leave me alone, Malfoy," Hermione said sternly.

He chuckled. "But you're so fun to taunt, Granger."

Hermione's hand was still clutching her wand tightly, but she refrained from hexing him. Something about his expression was different, curious. He was not horrifically angry as before, but proud, almost playful, as though he wanted Hermione to attack him. He wanted to push her to see what she would do.

"What do you want?" she asked breathlessly, his hand on her throat tightening ever so slightly.

"What do _I_ want?" he asked, staring into her eyes with determination, "What do _you_ want?"

"I want you to let me go," she snapped.

His eyes narrowed. "Make me."

Hermione lifted her wand to point it at Draco, but he had anticipated her move.

"Expelliarmus," he said quickly and her wand was jerked out of her hand.

Hermione whimpered and writhed beneath his grasp; He released his hold on her throat, only to grab her wrists and pin her arms above her head against the wall. Hermione watched as the corner of his mouth curled into a smile.

"I said 'make me'," he taunted, more serious this time.

A million thoughts were spiraling through Hermione's mind. What was she supposed to do? She could no longer hit him, but she could still spit in his face. Their forms were too tightly pressed together for her to knee him in the groin or kick him in the shin. What more could she do? What was it that Malfoy wanted from her?

The blood rushed from her face when a thought struck her, and later she would wonder why she did not question her own judgment. Quickly, and as hard as she could, Hermione pushed herself forward and met Draco's lips with her own. If she had truly expected him to let her go, she was sorely disappointed; His lips were hard and unyielding at first, exactly like the first time she had kissed him, but they quickly parted to meet hers.

Hermione stared for a moment at Draco's closed eyelids, unsure what she should do, but she could not deny the fiery feeling growing in the pit of her stomach. When she could no longer resist, she allowed her eyes to flutter closed and exhaled into his mouth, which only seemed to entice him more.

He kissed her forcefully, using his weight to pin her against the wall, and matching each of her movements. Every inch of her was on fire, and only growing more so with every passing second. She had no idea how she had gotten here, but she could ask questions later. At the moment, her head was rushing and her knees were growing weak.

And then, his lips were no longer on hers. Instead, they were so close to her ear that she could almost feel them when he spoke.

"No one will know about this, if you know what's good for you," he warned in a whisper.

He released her arms, but Hermione waited for a moment to open her eyes. In the event that this was all real, she wanted to take it all in. It was so unexpected and so strange and so... riveting. Gods, she had never experienced anything like the way she felt right now. Sure, she had kissed boys, but never one that she hated so much as Malfoy.

By the time Hermione opened her eyes, he was disappearing around the corner and then he was out of sight.

...x...x...x...

"Are you alright?" Ron asked nervously over dinner.

Hermione had only said a few words since she arrived to the Great Hall, although she was nibbling at her food. She sat with her back to the Slytherin table again, terrified to meet Draco's gaze. If she saw him, she would only relive those brief moments in the abandoned corridor, and her friends would know that something was wrong.

Draco's warning had been clear enough: She was forbidden to tell anyone. Not that should would _want_ to tell anyone in the first place, because everyone would think she was barking mad.

Perhaps she was mad, at least slightly, because as much as she wanted to deny it, she had actually enjoyed kissing Draco.

"Hermione?" Ron asked.

"Hmmm."

"I asked if you were alright?" he repeated.

"I'm fine," Hermione answered, keeping her voice as level as possible. "Just thinking."

"When are you not thinking?" Harry asked.

She smiled weakly.

Ginny gave her a curious look; She, unlike Harry and Ron, could not be fooled by a mere nonchalant response. Something was definitely different, the kind of something that could only be noticed by another female. Ginny recognized the expression on Hermione's face and knew instinctively that she was thinking about a boy. She smiled, but said nothing... there would be plenty of time to interrogate her in the common room where they had no eavesdroppers.

...x...x...x...

_DPOV_

After dinner, Draco headed back to the Slytherin Common Room confidently. He had finally kissed Granger, which had been the only thing on his mind for several weeks. He had gotten it out of his system and now he could finally forget about the whole thing. Honestly, he felt better. So much so, that it did not go without Blaise's notice.

"You seem happy, mate," he observed.

Draco smiled. "More relieved than anything."

"Good," Blaise said. "I was beginning to worry."

"Me too," Draco chuckled. "I thought I had lost my sanity."

"So, who was she?"

Draco's heart leaped into his throat. "What?"

"I figured you were so bent out of shape because of some girl," Blaise admitted. "It happens to the best of us."

"Some girl," Draco mumbled to himself. No, Granger wasn't just some 'girl'. She was some 'mudblood' and there was a very distinct difference in his opinion.

"So, who was she?" Blaise asked, refusing to give up.

"Nobody," Draco answered shortly. "It doesn't matter."

"Was it Parkinson?"

Draco snorted. "As if I would touch that..."

Blaise laughed as well. "You're right."

"Can I ask you a question, mate?" Draco asked suddenly.

"Shoot."

"Is it possible to be attracted to someone you hate?"

Blaise considered this. "Sure."

"What makes you say that?" Draco asked, raising his brow.

"Well, that Weasel girl gets under my skin, but you have to admit she's pretty hot," he admitted.

Draco scrunched his nose. "I guess I see your point."

"Why the question?"

Draco shook his head. "No reason."


	4. The Halloween Ball

After dinner that night, Ginny was able to corner Hermione in the Gryffindor common room. She was curled up on the couch, her knees brought up to her chest, and her nose buried in a book. Ginny plopped down beside her none too gently and smiled at her friend over the binding of the book.

"Hey, I wanted to ask you something," Ginny began, as inconspicuously as possible.

Hermione raised her brow and lowered her book. "What is it? Is something wrong?"

Ginny shook her head. "I just noticed that you were in a particularly good mood at dinner," she explained. "And I was wondering if there was something you wanted to tell me."

Hermione felt her stomach toss uncomfortably. It was so hard for her to lie, especially to Ginny; Ginny had a way of reading people that made it very difficult to be dishonest with her.

"No," Hermione replied, trying to steady her voice. "Like what?"

Ginny shrugged. "I don't know. Something different? Did something happen?"

Hermione swallowed hard and shifted her attention to the book in her hand. She slowly turned the page, and contemplated how she could answer Ginny.

"No," she answered shakily. "Nothing different."

"I just thought... oh, forget it, it's nothing," Ginny said, quickly changing her mind.

Hermione looked at her. "What? What were you going to say?"

Ginny shook her head. "I thought you might have finally sneaked into an empty classroom to snog some boy or something, but I guess I was wrong."

Hermione laughed nervously. "No, no, of course not. No. What makes you say that?" _After all, it had been a corridor._

"Just a hunch," she shrugged.

Hermione smiled at her friend. "You would be the first to know if I had."

Ginny returned her smile. "I hope so. Now come on; Ron and Harry are about to start their chess game."

Hermione gave her book a final, defeated look before snapping it closed and jumping up to follow Ginny to where Ron and Harry had the chess board set up.

"I'll play the winner," Ginny said hopefully as she plopped down beside them.

"That'll be me," Ron smiled to Hermione, who blushed a soft pink and looked away.

...x...x...x...

Draco strode into Potions class proudly, a smug smile gracing his face, and his chest poking out as though he had won something. He would finally be able to sit through a class without being bothered by Granger, and he was very much looking forward to it.

For the last few weeks Draco had suffered; He had thought about Hermione kissing him, and how he just stood there and had not even pushed her away. He had been surprised, but why was he not able to do anything? As much as he tried to rid himself of the memory, he could not help but want to change it, even if he could kiss her just to shove her away or hex her or... _something_. And ever since he had kissed Hermione a second time, and gotten it out of his system, he honestly felt happier. He felt relieved.

That was, until he took a seat across from her in Potions and glanced across the aisle.

Hermione was smiling, her eyes twinkling brightly. The weasel oaf had said something to make her laugh, and he heard her giggle melodically. Her laugh truly wasn't as annoying as he had thought before. He watched her for a moment, her cheeks blushing softly as she muttered something to Harry. A fire sparked in his chest upon seeing her so happy; It was something he could not explain, something unfamiliar. Draco cursed under his breath and slammed his book on his desk.

"You alright, mate?" Zabini asked in a hushed voice.

"I'm fine," Draco growled just as Slughorn entered the classroom.

Throughout class, Draco kept his head bowed and stared at the desk as much as possible. Professor Slughorn was giving a lecture instead of having them make a potion, and it was quite boring. Occasionally, he flicked his gaze across the aisle to see Hermione scribbling notes or with her hand up to answer a question. He did not want to look at her, and he tried not to, but his gaze seemed to travel in her direction without his consent.

After what seemed like ages, class finally ended.

An excited whisper floated through the Great Hall that evening; It was rumored that Professor Dumbledore would be making a very important announcement before dinner and the entire school was teeming with excitement. Hermione, Harry, and Ron took their usual seats at the Gryffindor house table, Hermione with her back to the Slytherins and together they waited anxiously for dinner to begin.

Sure enough, Professor Dumbledore stood at his place at the teacher's table and waved his hands to quiet down the audience. After a moment, the room was almost silent, and Dumbledore cleared his throat.

"Good evening, students," he said and he bowed his head. "Since the Yule Ball two years ago, I have received quite a few requests for another school-wide dance. I have discussed it with the other members of the school staff, and they too agree that an event of inter-house mingling will be very beneficial. This is why in a fortnight, on the night of Halloween, Hogwarts will be hosting its first ever costume ball."

A wave of excitement spread across the hall, as the students looked around to see the reactions of everyone else. There were squeals, and whispers, and 'oohs' and 'aahs' and it took a moment for Professor Dumbledore to get the hall quieted down once more.

"All costumes will be accepted if they fall within the school's dress code, and there will be prizes for the most creative and best costumes. It will take place here, in the Great Hall and will begin at 8'clock sharp. For more information and rules, please check the information boards in the common rooms."

Hermione saw Dumbledore smile and presumed that he too was excited about the ball. After all, school-wide events besides Quidditch were few and far between. As he took his seat and the food appeared, she could already hear Ginny talking about what she wanted to go as to the dance.

"I think a fairy would be cute!" she exclaimed. "Or maybe a mermaid. Maybe Ron should go as a troll."

Ron flashed her a rather rude hand gesture and Ginny stuck her tongue out at him.

"A fairy would be pretty," Hermione agreed, wondering curiously who, if anyone, would ask her to the ball. "I would love to go as Belle from Beauty and the Beast!"

Everyone but Harry gave Hermione a curious look. Even Neville and Seamus, who were seated next to their small group, had turned to join the conversation.

"Belle is a princess in a muggle story," Hermione explained carefully. "She starts as a commoner, but falls in love with a beast who is actually a prince."

The guys were less than impressed, but Ginny smiled excitedly. "Are there other stories about princesses? Who would go as the beastly prince?"

"There are several," Hermione assured her. "There are Cinderella, and the Little Mermaid..."

"There's a mermaid princess!" Ginny exclaimed.

Hermione smiled widely. "She also has red hair. And as far as the prince, we'll just have to see who asks me to the ball."

An image, only half-formed, flitted in Hermione's mind for a moment; However, she quickly shook her head to rid herself of the improbable notion. Not only did the Beast not have blindingly white hair, but Draco Malfoy would never in a million years ask her to a ball.

"Hermione, are you alright?" Ron asked in a hushed voice.

"I'm fine," she said, forcing a smile. "Just thinking about my costume."

...x...x...x...

With the Halloween ball quickly approaching, everyone was in a hurry to find a date and plan their costumes. It seemed to be the only thing Draco heard about nowadays, although he was not planning on going. There was no girl he liked enough to take, although there was no shortage of those who wanted to go with him, and he had never been very creative for such things as costumes. Blaise on the other hand was extremely excited, and was planning a trip to Hogsmeade to look for something to use for his werewolf costume.

"Drake, you have to go," Zabini urged. "Even if you don't have a date."

"Who are you taking?" Draco asked, uninterested in their conversation.

"Maybe Elena, that fourth year with the short hair," he wondered aloud. "Or maybe someone from another house."

Draco scrunched up his nose. "Another house? What? Like a Ravenclaw?"

He shrugged. "Maybe. Or a Gryffindor. But there's no way I would go with a Hufflepuff, no matter how hot she is."

"I was starting to think you'd gone mad," Draco joked. "I'll think about going."

"Are you going to wear a costume?" Zabini asked, still interested in talking about the ball.

"No."

"Oh, come on, Drake..."

Draco laughed. "I'll go as a ruggedly handsome bachelor with more money than he can spend and more women than he can want."

Zabini looked at his friend curiously. "The bachelor from Witches Weekly?"

"No," Draco shook his head. "Myself."

The two burst into laughter.

...x...x...x...

Hermione's kiss with Draco was now a distant memory, and it appeared that he had also completely forgotten it. He no longer pestered her in Potions; In fact, it had been several days since he had said anything to her, Harry, or Ron, which was strange. At first she thought he was sick, but she began to think it had something to do with her. She had given up hoping that he would corner her again in the corridor, although she continued to travel it every day by herself, and she tried to pretend that everything had gone back to normal.

If she was not absolutely certain that it had actually happened, she would have tried to convince herself it had all been a dream.

"Hermione," Ron said, distracting her from her thoughts.

"Yes, Ronald?"

She, Ron, and Harry were all studying in the library, and Harry had stepped around the bookshelf to find some more reference books.

"I wanted to ask... Well, I was wondering... Has anyone asked you to the ball yet?"

"No, they haven't," Hermione answered, slightly disappointed as to where she knew the conversation was going.

Ron breathed a small sigh of relief. "Do you want to go with me? You know, as friends, or whatever."

Hermione forced a smile. Seeing as how the one guy she would have most liked to go with was the only guy she couldn't go with... And she was sure she didn't actually want to go with him, but their passionate kiss still had her brainwashed... "Sure, Ron. We can go as friends."

Ron's face suddenly resembled the color of a ripe, red apple and he smiled widely. "Alright, cool. As friends."

No sooner had Hermione said yes, did Harry appear in the aisle without a single book in his hands. It became blatantly clear to Hermione that he had only disappeared to give Ron his chance to ask Hermione to the ball.

She almost laughed.


	5. A Walk in Hogsmeade

"But Ron you have to wear a costume!" Hermione pleaded. "Harry, Ginny, and I are all dressing up!" This argument had been going since they left the Herbology greenhouse.

"Harry, you're dressing up too!" Ron exclaimed.

With a shrug, Harry deposited his bag on the floor next to his desk. "Ginny said she needs a prince for her costume. It's not really a big deal, Ron, just dress up."

Ron huffed. "I haven't even heard of these muggle stories. Besides, no one else will know who we are."

"Ginny hasn't heard of them either but she's on board," Hermione retorted. "And you do realize how many half-bloods there are at Hogwarts, don't you?"

Ron scowled. He was outnumbered three to one if he counted Ginny, and he was certain she would also be against him. The fact of the matter was, he didn't want to dress up in some stuffy outfit. Sure, he wanted to go to the ball, but he had never been a fan of costumes.

"You're going to be a great Prince Eric, Harry!" Hermione smiled widely. "And Ginny looks just like Ariel."

Someone scoffed behind her, but Hermione didn't need to turn to know it was Draco. "Potter's going as a prince? And what's Weasel going as, a house elf?"

"There's no need to wonder what you're going as, Malfoy," Hermione snapped. "A shrewd prat with an overinflated ego."

Draco's eyes narrowed. "You don't have to dress up at all, Granger. You can just go as a filthy mudblood."

Ron stood up so quickly that he knocked his chair over backwards, and he probably would have thrown himself at Malfoy if Professor Slughorn had not entered the classroom at that moment.

"Everyone settle down," he said, waving his hands dismissively at them all. "Sit down, please! We have a lot to go over today."

Hermione took her seat and cut her eyes over at Malfoy; Oh, what she would have given to wipe the smug smile off his face. _Or have that smug smile pressed against her lips_...

"Ms. Granger, I'm certain that you know the answer," Professor Slughorn said, interrupting her thoughts of kissing Malfoy. It was a good thing too, because that was the last thing she wanted to think about.

She cleared her throat. "Boomslang skin."

Professor Slughorn eyes brightened. "Very good. Take 5 points to Gryffindor!"

...x...x...x...

"I think you should find another date," Ginny snapped. "If he's not even going to dress up, what's the point in taking him?"

Hermione sighed. "I already told him we could go as friends. Oh, that's perfect!"

Ginny had just picked up a shimmering teal fabric.

"Well he can go as your friend and someone else can go as your date," she huffed. "I can't believe he's bring such a prat."

"Hermione, is the prince a mermaid too? I can't remember," Harry asked confusedly.

She giggled. "No, the mermaid falls in love with a human."

"You'll have to forgive me," he apologized. "I don't exactly follow Disney."

"He wears a white, flowing shirt and black pants," Hermione explained. "But I would wear a crown if I were you... so people know you're a prince."

"This is so exciting!" Ginny squealed. "I'll spend the summer with you, Hermione, and we can watch these _movies_. They sound amazing."

Hermione smiled at her friend, afraid to tell her they were stories for children. "Sure thing."

After finding the brightest yellow fabric in the store, which perfectly resembled that of Belle's dress, Hermione carried the roll to the front counter. She had drawn up sketches of her costume, as well as Ginny's and she had them neatly folded in her pocket.

"Hello, dear," the old woman smiled at her. "What's the occasion?"

"Hogwarts is having a costume ball," Hermione explained happily. "I suspect you'll have quite a few customers over the next two weeks."

The woman's eyes flashed with surprise, but she smiled. "Any business is good business," she said. "So what are your costumes going to be?"

"We're both princesses, but I'll be in a ball gown and she'll be a mermaid," Hermione said, gesturing to Ginny who was trying on a feathered hat in front of a full length mirror. "And Harry will need a white shirt - I've drawn up some sketches, granted I'm not a very good artist."

"My, this looks just like Belle from Beauty and the Beast!" the old woman said with a smile.

Hermione's eyes widened. "That's right. And Ginny and Harry are going as Ariel and Prince Eric."

"That is too adorable," she admired. "And who'll be going as the beast?"

Hermione frowned. "No one. I'll be going alone."

"Don't worry, dear. I'm sure you'll find yourself a prince or two there," she giggled.

"If you don't mind me asking," Hermione began nervously, "How do you recognize these characters?"

The old lady laughed. "My son married a muggle and I have two granddaughters."

...x...x...x...

It was on their way to the Three Broomsticks that Hermione spotted him, his blonde hair unmistakable. He was leaning against a building, fiddling with something small in his hands. He wasn't looking in their direction, but somehow she knew that he was aware of her presence. Perhaps he had seen her when they left the store. For all she knew, he could have been waiting for her.

"You guys go ahead and get a table," Hermione ushered her friends. "I'll catch up with you in a few."

Ginny gave her a curious smile before pulling Harry along by the hand toward the bar. Hermione hesitated for a moment, debating whether she should confront Draco or not, but she decided against it. Instead, she turned and headed down the street leading through Hogsmeade. She kept her head high, as though she were simply observing the shops lining the streets, despite the fact that she had memorized each and every one of the storefronts over the years. She turned down a smaller street which dead ended in a clump of trees but kept walking, not daring to look behind her.

Hermione disappeared into the treeline, just far enough so that she could not be seen from the main street and she waited. She stood awkwardly, unsure whether she should cross her arms or clasp her hands behind her back or even draw her wand as a precaution. What she was thinking was ludicrous and after several minutes she began to think she was wrong.

After a few more minutes, she heard light footsteps making their way through the underbrush, snapping small twigs. Draco stepped out from behind a tree and met Hermione's gaze hesitantly.

"Why did you lead me out here?" he asked dryly.

Hermione chuckled. "I didn't lead you; You followed me."

His expression was blank. "So you just like to venture into the forest for no reason."

"I enjoy the outdoors," she blushed.

He rolled his eyes, obviously unconvinced, and took several steps toward her. "You know the wilderness really isn't the place for a defenseless little girl like yourself. You might get hurt."

"Is that a threat?" she asked sharply, her hand reaching for her wand.

His jaw hardened. "If I wanted to hurt you, I wouldn't have to bring you out here to do it."

Draco continued to make his way toward her, and she slowly backed up until she hit a tree trunk. She froze. Her hand had found the handle of her wand, so she felt capable of defending herself, but Draco hadn't even drawn his so she doubted things would end in a duel.

"Why did you follow me?" she asked.

"You looked like someone who wanted to be followed," he answered, now less that a foot from her.

"I guess that's how all stalkers justify their actions," Hermione said dismissively, her heartbeat picking up in her chest.

"So you're going to the dance with Weasel," he changed the subject. "That seems a little low, even for you."

Hermione's cheeks flushed. "We're just going as friends."

Draco was close enough for her to feel his warm breath on her face. He slowly ran his fingers along her cheek and shivers ran down her spine, immobilizing her.

"Why did you lead me here?" he whispered.

"I... I don't know," she stammered.

"There has to be _some_ reason," he said, taking a deep breath. She was wearing the same perfume she had been wearing the last time they kissed and the memory of it flooded back to him. He wanted to push her way, maybe even hit her. He hated her for being a mudblood and for making him feel this way.

"I want to know what you want from me," she managed, her knees growing weaker the longer she stood so close to him.

The corner of his mouth curled into a seductive smile. "The same thing you want from me."

With that, he leaned forward and met her lips with his. This time they were not hard, they were not unyielding, but they molded to her mouth perfectly. Hermione could hardly control herself; She wound her fingers in his hair, eliciting a moan from him and driving him to kiss her harder and faster. Between their kisses, Draco brought his wand up into the air and muttered "Muffliato" before tucking it away and pulling Hermione into him.

More easily than Hermione would have thought possible, Draco reached down and grabbed her thighs, lifting her off the ground and pinning her against the tree. She could hardly feel the rough bark through her layers of clothes, but she could feel every bit of Draco as he pressed himself against her.

Hermione exhaled sharply as Draco broke their kiss and bit at her neck. All her rationality seemed to melt away and nothing at all mattered except that Draco keep doing what he was doing.

"I hate you," Draco groaned as he thrust his hips forward.

"Likewise," she whispered.

He easily pulled Hermione away from the tree trunk, and before she knew it, she was on her back laying in a patch of fallen leaves. Draco was on top of her, still kissing her, his hands dancing over the skin of her stomach. A fleeting feeling of worry overcame Hermione; Surely Draco wouldn't take things too far. Kissing him was fantastic, but anything more was out of the question... But then Draco bit her neck again and she forgot everything she had been thinking.

"You have no idea how much I hate you," Draco continued, working his way from one side of her neck to the other. "I want to see you hurt. _I_ want to hurt you. But at the same time, I want to..."

Draco pressed his hips down onto her and she could feel him, hard and ready. Her stomach flipped uncomfortably and she was certain that it was about to happen. He was about to take her here, in the forest, and she was not entirely sure she could stop him.

But then the weight of him was gone. Hermione opened her eyes and saw him walking away. She sat up suddenly, wanting to call to him, but knowing it was no use. It was better that he went, because she had to get to the Three Broomsticks before Ginny and Harry began to worry. She allowed herself a few more moments to take everything in, the fact that Draco had followed her into the forest and had pinned her against a tree, how he had laid her on the forest floor and shown her how much he wanted her, and then how he had disappeared. It was so surreal and incredible.

She finally stood and dusted herself off, picking the leaves out of her hair as she walked.


	6. Temptation

Hermione smiled politely as she slid into the booth across from Ginny and Harry. Ginny's inquisitive eyes seemed to ask, 'Where the hell have you been?' but Harry seemed unfazed by her prolonged absence.

"I stopped by the book shop," Hermione explained. "There's a book I've been looking for, but they still don't have it."

Ginny pursed her lips, unconvinced. Beneath the table, she kicked Harry in the shin, making him wince. As if on cue, Harry slid out of the booth. "I'll, erm, be in the loo."

She waited until Harry was out of earshot before turning to Hermione with a sly smile. "Book store, eh?"

Hermione nodded.

"Then how do you explain the leaves?" Ginny asked.

"L-leaves?" she stammered. "What leaves?"

"The leaves in your hair."

Hermione's heart fell. She raised her hand up to smooth over her hair and found a leaf she had missed on the way to the Three Broomsticks. She could feel the heat rising in her cheeks and her brain wouldn't work fast enough.

"I'm not sure how they got there," she said, tossing it on the floor.

Ginny smirked. "Hermione, I'm your best friend. You don't have to lie to me."

Hermione bit her bottom lip. There was no way she could tell Ginny, or anyone else, the truth. After all, who would believe her?

"I went for a walk and slid down a hill," Hermione sighed.

"Alone?" Ginny asked, raising a single eyebrow.

"Y- perhaps not," Hermione whispered. "But it was nothing really."

Ginny's eyes lit up. "Who was it?"

Hermione shook her head. "I-I don't want to say."

"'Mione! Come on, you have to tell! Is he in Gryffindor?"

Slowly, Hermione shook her head.

Not to her surprise, Ginny's mouth fell open. "Is he cute?"

Hermione wrinkled her nose. "Yes and no. I guess he's cute in his own way."

"What house is he in?"

Hermione huffed. "He's just a friend, and it's nothing like that. Please drop it, Ginny!"

Ginny opened her mouth to object, but Harry had returned.

"What did I miss?" he asked.

"Nothing," the girls said in unison.

...x...x...x...

Sitting through Potions class with Draco across the aisle from her was the hardest thing Hermione had ever had to do, especially considering what had happened in the forest just outside of Hogsmeade. Every time she thought about his body against her and his lips eagerly finding their way around her neck, she felt chills roll down her back. But by the way Draco sat coolly in his chair and avoided meeting her gaze, it was obvious that he did not feel the same. Of course he didn't! He was Draco Malfoy and she was a muggleborn; There was no way he could ever fantasize about her in such a away, even though he had kissed her like he actually wanted her.

Hermione avoided the abandoned corridor as much as possible; She knew that Draco would not be waiting for her there, so there was no point in getting her hopes up. She was almost certain that her escapade with Draco had come to an anticlimactic end when she spotted him unusually close to the Gryffindor common room a few nights before the Halloween ball. He was walking casually, hands tucked into his pockets, staring blankly ahead as he marched down the corridor. Hermione happened to be alone, returning from a trip to the library, when she saw him. It didn't take her more than a second before she decided to follow him.

She kept as much distance as she could between the two of them, pausing every now and then to fall even more behind. Draco appeared completely oblivious to her presence, or at least that's what he wanted her to think. After a few minutes he paused; A door had suddenly revealed itself in the face of the stone wall: the entrance to the Room of Requirement.

Hermione's heart sank. She watched as Draco slipped through the door and closed it softly behind him, but it did not disappear. It was waiting for one more occupant before it disguised itself again.

_Oh, Godric, what have I gotten myself into!_ Hermione thought as she slowly stepped closer to the door. If she followed him, there was no telling what might happen. He could kill her and it would be ages before anyone found her. He could take advantage of her and there would be nothing she could do to stop him. That was the thing bothering her the most; Did she really want to lose her virginity to Draco Malfoy? Of all the people in the world, did she want it to be the man she hated almost as much as Voldemort himself?

Her hand rested softly on the doorknob as her conflicting feelings continued to battle within her. How much longer could they keep this up before Draco grew bored and expected other things? Or grew bored and moved on to the next girl? At the rate things were going, she doubted it would be very long. If that be the case, perhaps she should make him wait longer. Make him suffer, make him beg...

A smile crossed Hermione's face and she let go of the handle. As much as she wanted to slip away into the Room of Requirement with him, she turned on her heel and hurried down the hall; She couldn't risk being seen in the event he came out looking for her.

...x...x...x...

_DPOV_

_I know she saw me_, Draco thought to himself. He was seated on a plush couch that had manifested in the Room of Requirement, chin resting on his folded hands. He had been waiting nearly twenty minutes in this position, waiting for the door to open and for Hermione to slip into the room. _She looked right at me. I know she followed me_. Then where the bloody hell was she?

Could he have been mistaken? Had she really not seen him as he crossed her path in the corridor? Had she been too absorbed in her literature to notice him? Had she seen him but decided it not worth her time to follow him? He had followed her into the woods for Merlin's sake, the least she could do was show up.

Draco ran a hand through his hair and glanced down at his watch. It was getting late.

_She would pull something like this,_ he thought. _The filthy wench. If anyone should be waiting around for the other to show up it's her._

And yet, here he was, freshly bathed and dressed in his finer clothes, waiting for her to come to him. He had thought about this moment all day, growing more anxious as time passed by. He wanted to feel her again, beneath him as he had in the forest; He wanted to taste her, to feel her lips on his. But at the same time he wanted to wrap his hands around her neck and hex her, curse her in a way he had never wanted to before. He hated her and wanted her.

After another ten minutes, Draco gave up his wait. It was obvious that she was not coming, and he felt slightly deflated. He slunk out of the room and headed back to the dungeons.

...x...x...x...

Hermione twirled around in front of the full length mirror, her dress flaring out as she spun. It was as close to Belle's dress as she could have hoped for, with off the shoulder sleeves and ruffled layers falling toward the floor.

"You've really outdone yourself!" Hermione squealed, clasping her hands over her mouth. "This is so perfect."

"You look like a princess, Hermione," Ginny smiled.

Ginny might not have looked like the merpeople in the Black Lake, but she certainly looked like Ariel. Her mermaid tail was shimmering turquoise that glittered like scales in the light. To stay within the dress code, her shirt was skin colored with a purple shell bikini top just like the Disney princess. It really was quite impressive. Harry wore black pants, a loose white shirt, and a golden crown and although his costume seemed rather plain next to the girls', he seemed happy just to be going with Ginny.

"You'll have guys fighting to dance with you," Ginny smiled as she looked over Hermione's dress. "You can just ditch Ron when you get there."

Hermione sighed. "But I told him we could go as friends."

Ginny blew a raspberry. "And he has plenty of other friends to keep him company."

Hermione would have been content to wear the dress all the way back to the castle, but she let the seamstress package it neatly in a box. After wearing the dress for even a few minutes, her regular clothes felt less than spectacular. Harry laid several galleons on the counter to pay for all three costumes, his gift to the both of them, and they headed back to the castle.

"I'm so glad she finished them on time," Ginny smiled. "Tomorrow night is going to be so much fun!"

Hermione smiled, wondering halfheartedly if she might see Draco at the dance. Not that it made a difference, she obviously would not speak to him in front of anyone, but she wanted to see what sort of costume he would show up in.

"I know," Hermione agreed. "You two look amazing together."

The Gryffindor common room was buzzing with excitement about the upcoming dance and people were already showing off their costumes. Hermione thought it would be best to wait until the dance to show off her billowing yellow dress; She wanted it to be as big a surprise as possible. She was almost certain this dress would get her more attention than the one she wore to the Yule Ball, although there were no sexy foreign students who would be attending this dance.

"We'll see you later, Hermione," Ginny said with a quirky smile. She was clenching Harry's hand and dragging him toward the portrait hole. "We're going for a walk."

Hermione nodded and waved them on. She knew that 'a walk' was synonymous with finding a dark corner of the castle to snog until their lips were chapped. Instead of hanging out in the common room, she decided to crawl into bed with a book and count down the hours until the Halloween ball. She, along with the rest of Gryffindor, could hardly wait.

**WARNING: There will be graphic chapters following this. I will post a warning, so if it's not your thing you can skip it. Thank you for reading! 3**


	7. Center of Attention

Hermione looked over herself in the mirror a final time and took a deep breath. It had taken nearly two hours and Ginny's help to fix her hair, but she was finally happy with it. Her make-up was dramatic with smoky eyes and vibrant lips; She hardly recognized herself in the mirror and she knew that the rest of Hogwarts would be just as surprised.

"You look amazing," Ginny admired with a smile. She too had fixed her hair and her makeup was bright and reflective of the colors she wore.

"Are you ready?" Hermione asked nervously. She could feel her heart beating in her throat and her knees were shaking.

"Definitely. I want to dance!"

Harry and Ron were waiting for them in the Gryffindor common room. Harry had transfigured a tie into a golden crown to go with his simple costume and, true to his word, Ron was dressed in regular clothes. Upon seeing Hermione, his face brightened to the hue of a ripe apple and his mouth fell open.

"Her-mione," he stuttered as he looked her over. "You look... dress... pretty... yellow..."

Hermione smiled awkwardly. "Thank you, Ronald."

"Yea, your hair looks... smooth," Harry added.

Ginny and Hermione exchanged smiles.

"Let's go then," Ginny ushered. "We don't want to be late."

Harry and Ginny walked hand in hand, their affection for one another reminiscent of the Disney couple they portrayed, while Hermione and Ron walked with at least a foot between them at all times. Ginny seemed to be the only talking, thinking out loud about what the ball would be like and who would be dressed as what and how she loved their costumes and how Ron was still a prat for not dressing up.

"I can't wait to see who wins the contest!" Ginny went on. "Are we going to enter? I think we should."

Hermione shrugged. "I hadn't planned on it, considering half the school won't know who we are."

"I still think we should."

They could hear the music before they entered the Great Hall and Hermione fought a smile. Her stomach was swimming with butterflies as she imagined people's reactions. The truth was, she wanted to be noticed, she wanted to turn heads, but there was one person in particular she wanted to see and she wasn't even sure he would be there. Holding her head up and putting on a smile, she stepped into the Great Hall alongside her friends and was met by a beautifully transformed space.

The house tables had been pushed against the walls leaving the entire belly of the hall open as a dance floor. Purple, green, and orange lights pulsated across the room and an upbeat song pounded in their eardrums. There were already several people dancing and several more seated along the tables. Hermione's jaw immediately dropped as she took it all in. The professors of Hogwarts had definitely outdone themselves.

"I'm going to go sit down," Ron said to Hermione as they made their way into the hall.

Hermione knitted her eyebrows together as she met his gaze. "Alright, but I'm going to dance."

He frowned uncomfortably. "Do you want me to dance with you?"

"Well, you are my date," she shrugged.

With a notable sigh, Ron took Hermione's hand and led her to the dance floor. Harry and Ginny had already found their groove and were bouncing and twirling around one another with ease. Ron, on the other hand, looked like he might vomit at any moment. Hermione smiled appreciatively and began to dance, her dress swaying with her movements while Ron kind of shifted his weight from one foot to another.

"You look like you're in pain," Hermione giggled.

Ron forced a smile. "I'm just not a big dancer."

"What did you think went on at a ball?"

He shrugged. "I didn't think you were much of a dancer either."

"There's a lot you don't bother to know about me, Ronald," she said, growing flustered. Things were certainly not going the way she had planned, and the night had just started.

To Ron's credit, he suffered through two songs before mentioning sitting down again. This time, Hermione obliged, even though she was in no mood to take a break because he had been gracious enough to dance with her. They sat down at an empty table and watched Ginny and Harry, both of who were still enjoying their time on the dance floor. Hermione was disappointed. She wanted to be out there dancing as well. But she hardly wanted to dance alone.

"I'm going to go get a drink," she said at last, tired of doing nothing.

"Would you bring me one as well?"

"Sure," she nodded and headed across the hall.

There were several different colored bowls of punch and plenty of finger foods like small sandwiches and meat on toothpicks. Hermione ate one of the sandwiches in two bites and ladled some pink punch into a small, plastic cup. It tasted like strawberries.

"Hermione," a voice said behind her.

She turned quickly and found herself face to face with a green alien with large, bug eyes. "Yes?"

"I thought that was you when I saw you with Ron," he continued. Hermione recognized Seamus's voice as he spoke. "Blimey, you look great. Belle, right?"

Hermione smiled. "Thank you, Seamus. Yes, I'm supposed to be Belle. Is that a mask?"

"The eyes are, but I transfigured my skin."

"That's impressive."

"So, if you're Belle, where's the Beast?"

Hermione shrugged. "I guess he didn't show up."

"That's a bloody shame," Seamus said. "Do you think Ron would mind if I danced with you?"

She blushed. "I don't think so. We're just here as friends."

He offered her his arm, which she immediately took. "Let's dance then."

Seamus was by no means a great dancer, but he was far more interesting than Ron. He threw his arms out in random directions and occasionally spun around on the spot, giving the illusion that he knew what he was doing. Hermione could not wipe the smile from her face as she watched him, and tried her best to keep up. After a few songs he thanked her for dancing with him and went off in search of his friends. Hermione headed to have a seat with Ron once more.

"Who's the guy with the green mask?" he asked shortly.

"It was Seamus," she replied.

"Oh," Ron said, his tone changing. He was about to open his mouth again, but just then someone approached them.

"Hermione, is that you?"

"Yes, Dean, it's me," she smiled. She was enjoying all the attention she was getting, even if it was from her friends.

Dean was clearly dressed as a vampire. He had more than likely used an extension charm on his teeth to make them look like fangs, because they extended passed his lips. He wore a black cloak with a white, blood-splattered shirt beneath it.

"I like your dress," he admired. "Seamus said you're some kind of princess."

"I'm a muggle princess," she corrected.

"I was wondering if you wanted to dance with me?"

Hermione's cheeks flushed and she flashed an embarrassed look at Ron. He was staring in the other direction, leaving the decision completely to her.

"Sure, Dean," she nodded and took his extended hand.

"I'll bring her back soon, Weasley!" he called over his shoulder.

She couldn't be sure, but Hermione thought she heard a string of insults come from behind them.

Unlike Ron or Seamus, Dean was a decent dancer. It was difficult for them to dance close together because of the volume of her dress, but he kept hold of her hand as they twirled and bounced together. He did not say much, but smiled a lot and complimented her look several times. They danced several songs together before Hermione said she needed to stop and catch her breath. With another smile, and a final compliment, Dean disappeared into the crowd and Hermione headed back to sit with her date.

"Dean looked pretty happy to be dancing with you," Ron declared. "I think he's got a thing for you."

Hermione shook her head. "Dean's nice, but we're just friends. Besides, I think he's dating a girl in Ravenclaw."

"Where's she then?"

Hermione bit the inside of her cheek. "I don't make it my mission in life to keep up with Dean Thomas..."

She was about to tell Ron what he and Dean Thomas could both go do, but at that moment a voice erupted over the boom of the music. It was Professor Dumbledore, who was standing at the head of the hall wearing a very strange, brightly-colored hat and robes.

"Those wishing to participate in the costume contest, please submit your name in the goblet in the entrance hall within the next twenty minutes," he said, his voice light but loud. And then it was gone.

Hermione stood, her intent being to head to the entrance hall to add her name to the contest, but she was stopped only a few feet away from the table. The person resembled a wolf more than a man, with an elongated snout and sleek, black hair covering all his exposed skin. His ears, which distinctly resembled dog ears, twitched in time with the music.

"Granger, looking good," he said, his long tongue licking his lips.

Hermione blinked several times to get her composure. "Who are you?"

"I'm a werewolf," he said, turning around so that she could see his furry tail. Whoever he was, he was dressed as a werewolf wearing a tattered shirt and beige shorts. He was balancing on the balls of his feet, his heels elongated like those of a dog. It had to be the most impressive costume she had seen so far that night.

"I can see that," she said with an irritated smile. "But _who_ are you. Have we met?"

"Not officially," he said. "I'm Blaise. Blaise Zabini."

If he had not spoken precisely as the song changed and the sound in the hall was almost nonexistent, she might have asked him to repeat himself. But she had heard him clearly enough. The werewolf in front of her was Draco Malfoy's best friend. Her heart nearly stopped.

"Are you just talking to me because no one will recognize you?" Hermione asked sharply.

"No, I'm talking to you because this is a party," he replied, sticking his lolling tongue out at her. "And you look like you want to dance."

Unable to hold her tongue, Hermione spit out the first thing that came to mind. "Won't Draco be mad?"

Blaise raised one of his wolf eyebrows at her. "Why would Draco get mad?"

Hermione blushed. "Because your his best friend and I'm... well, he hates me."

He shrugged. "We're best mates, yeah, but I stay out of his business and he stays out of mine. So, does that mean you'll dance with me?"

She thought for a long moment. Dancing with Seamus and Dean had not bothered her, mostly because she was friends with both of them. But this, this was something different. Not only was Blaise a Slytherin, but he was Draco's best friend. Surely if Blaise had come to the dance, Draco had too. And if he had come with Blaise, he would obviously notice her dancing with him. This opportunity seemed too good to pass up.

"Only because I've never seen a werewolf dance before," she mocked. "And I don't want to miss that."


	8. Pureblooded Pirate

_DPOV_

"Hurry up, Drake!" Blaise called. He was putting the finishing touches on his werewolf costume and the Halloween ball had already started. If they were lucky, he would make it in time to enter the costume contest, but if they didn't it would be Draco's fault.

"I am _not_ going like this," Draco called, refusing to leave the sanctuary of his bedchamber. After being very annoying for a number of days, Blaise had finally convinced his best mate to wear a costume, but Draco was already regretting it.

"Come out so I can see it, mate," Blaise encouraged. "I can't fix it if I don't get a look at it first."

"I hate you," Draco grumbled.

"No, you don't. Hurry up, I need you to check my back fur."

Draco burst into laughter. "That is so wrong."

With a deep breath, Draco stepped into the Slytherin common room. Blaise, who had already transfigured his face to resemble a werewolf, had his back turned to a full length mirror and he was currently trying to grow fur on his back.

"Mate, you're going to hurt yourself," Draco laughed.

Blaise stopped what he was doing and looked up. "It's not that bad, Drake. Come look."

Draco huffed and reluctantly trod over to the mirror. He stood for a moment considering himself, turning first to the left and then to the right. After drinking a tiny bit of hair-growing potion, his hair had grown nearly a foot and he had tied it into a plait down his back. He looked strange in his mix-matched outfit: a knee length navy coat with gold trim and wide buttons, a button-up beige shirt with black pants and boots, and a red bandana tied over his head. In his hands he held a triangular, leather hat that Blaise assured him was a legitimate pirate hat.

"Aren't pirates a bloody muggle thing?" Draco asked through gritted teeth.

"If you'd pay attention in History of Magic, you'd know there have been several wizarding pirates, like Blackbeard," Blaise pointed out. "Put on your hat."

Draco grumbled and pulled the hat on over his bandana. He truly did look like a pirate now, and he had to admit it was growing on him. He looked like someone out of a story, a very handsome someone.

"See, it's perfect!" Blaise walked a circle around Draco, admiring his handiwork. "Now hurry up and help me with my fur before we miss all the fun."

On their way to the Great Hall, Draco tried to forget that he was wearing a costume. Perhaps, if he pretended he was wearing regular robes, it might make things less awkward. As it was, no one would recognize him at first glance, but he still felt strange. Blaise's costume was too realistic for his own good; Someone might freak out and think he was the real thing.

"You look disgusting," Draco said.

"Thanks, mate," Blaise smiled, bearing his pointed teeth.

"No, really. I hope you aren't planning on picking up girls in that getup."

Blaise shook his head. "I just want to win the costume contest."

"Good luck with that."

"You're going to enter too," Blaise assured him. "You can't let all my work go to waste."

Draco shot his friend a dangerous look. "You're lucky I'm even wearing it."

A large goblet was set up just outside the Great Hall with little slips of paper for contestants to write their names on. A vaguely familiar someone was standing beside the table making sure contestants only entered their names once: She was short and squat and dressed like a brightly colored flower in a pot.

"Professor Sprout?" Blaise guessed.

The flower smiled at him. "Yes, I am! And, who might you be?"

"Blaise Zabini," he said. "And this is Draco."

Professor Sprout's eyes widened. "That is a very impressive costume, Mr. Zabini. In fact, it's the best I've seen. Draco? Draco Malfoy? My, I never would have guessed."

Draco forced a smile. If his teacher didn't recognize him, perhaps the students wouldn't either.

"You two enjoy the party!" Professor Sprout waved them along so the next contestant could enter their name.

...x...x...x...

_DPOV_

Draco had actually been enjoying himself, until he saw her. How could he not see her? She was practically glowing in that yellow dress. And he wasn't the only one who noticed. Since he had arrived he watched her dance with two different guys.

"Is that Granger?" Blaise asked suddenly.

"I haven't seen her," Draco lied.

"The girl with the yellow dress. It has to be her! Look, she's sitting with Weasel."

Draco allowed his eyes to land on her again. "Oh, I guess so."

"I've never seen her look like that," Blaise admired.

Draco rolled his eyes. "She probably transfigured her face."

"I'll be right back, mate."

"Where are you going?"

"To find out," Blaise said with a wink.

A fiery feeling erupted in Draco's chest as he watched his Blaise approach Granger and engage her in conversation. He stood still as a statue as he watched them, his eyes narrow as though he were trying to read their lips. To Draco's annoyance, Granger was smiling.

"What's he playing at?" Draco whispered under his breath.

It became clear when Blaise offered his hand and she took it that he had asked her to dance. The fire in Draco's chest grew stronger and he cursed. How could he possible be jealous of the mudblood? She was nothing, less than nothing... But he watched them with envious eyes as they danced together, his stomach tightening whenever they got close to one another.

Draco forced himself to look away and headed absentmindedly to the drink table. Unfortunately, there was nothing strong enough on this table to take his mind off of his jealousy, but he settled on punch and a few sandwiches. If he had had any sense, he would have brought something to spike the punch bowls but he had been too distracted by his costume to think reasonably.

He stood by himself for several minutes, getting curious looks from passersby.

"Turns out she didn't transfigure it," a voice said at his side. He looked over and saw that Blaise had returned. "Who knew she had always looked like that?"

Draco merely grunted.

"Something wrong, mate? Go have some fun. Pansy is here dressed as a ballerina."

"What did Granger say?" he asked, ignoring Blaise's comment about Pansy.

"She asked if you'd be mad about us dancing together," he snickered. "Because I'm your best mate and you hate her."

Draco chuckled. "Did she say anything else?"

"That she thinks I might win the costume contest," he bragged.

...x...x...x...

Hermione went to find Ron after her dance with Blaise, but he was not where she had left him. She assumed he had gone to the bathroom or to get something to drink until she noticed him talking to Lavender Brown across the hall. She was dressed as a pink and purple butterfly and hugging all over Ron as though he were her date. Hermione smirked. It was about time that Ron enjoyed himself a bit and she would no longer have to worry about hurting his feelings.

She took a seat to give her feet a break and watched the dancers for a while; The lights bounced off their sweaty skin, making them shimmer. Just as many people were in costume as those dressed in normal clothes. As she looked around she saw a giant spider, a centaur, a zombie, and a girl in a Victorian gown.

She finally saw Ginny and Harry finally stumbling over to her table, both out of breath. Ginny took a seat at Hermione's side while Harry went to get them drinks.

"Looks like you two are having fun," Hermione observed.

Ginny smiled. "I haven't danced so much in ages! I saw you dancing with Dean."

"And Seamus, and Blaise," Hermione corrected.

"Blaise? As in Blaise Zabini?"

Hermione nodded smugly. "He's dressed as a werewolf."

"Ew!" Ginny gasped. "I saw him! His costume looks so real."

"It's pretty gross. The fur even feels real."

"Where's Ron?" Ginny asked, looking around for her brother.

"Snogging Lavender, I think," Hermione shrugged.

"He ditched you?"

She shook her head. "I kind of ditched him, but he didn't want to dance."

The music suddenly changed from its upbeat tempo to a slow, slightly romantic song.

Ginny sighed. "Ugh! I wish Harry would hurry up; I want to dance to this."

"You like dancing to slow songs?" Hermione asked, her nose scrunched.

"Of course," she answered. "And don't look now, but I think someone wants to dance with you."

He stopped in front of Hermione, hand extended gracefully. His hair was long and blonde, which Hermione assumed to be a wig, and he wore a knee-length blue coat.

"Dance?" he asked shortly.

Hermione looked nervously at Ginny, but she simply smiled encouragingly.

'Go on,' she mouthed.

With a sigh, Hermione took the stranger's hand and followed him out onto the dance floor. He spun around to face her gracefully and rested one hand on her waist while clasping her hand with the other. He then proceeded to lead them in a slightly formal dance. Hermione took this as an opportunity to get a better look at his costume.

"I take it you're a pirate," Hermione stated.

"It doesn't take a bloody genius to figure that one out, Granger."

Hermione almost tripped over her own feet.

"Malfoy?"

He smirked. "Surprised?"

"I didn't think you'd be dressed up," she admitted. "Or that you'd ask me to dance."

"I like this song," he shrugged.

"You look... different."

"Different good or different bad?"

"Good, I think."

He scoffed. "What are you supposed to be?"

"A princess," she answered, being clear to leave out the word 'muggle'.

"You're missing something," he frowned and stopped in his tracks.

Hermione watched nervously as Draco drew out his wand and pointed it at her face. He mumbled something under his breath and she squeezed her eyes closed. Surely he wouldn't hex her in front of the entire school. But, then again, that sounded exactly like something he would do. After a moment, she felt something land softly on her head.

She opened one eyes, and then the other. Draco had already stowed his wand and was reached for her waist again.

"What did you do?" Hermione asked, reaching for her head. Something sharp poked her finger and she retracted her hand quickly.

"It's a crown," he grumbled. "You could at least say thank you."

She blushed. "Thank you."

"You'll need it; The contest is about to start."


	9. The Costume Contest

Draco disappeared without a word as the song ended and Hermione was left alone on the dance floor; She watched him walk away, wishing that just this once he would stay a few moments longer, but eventually she gave up.

Disappointed, she made her way back to their table. As she took a seat, she scanned the hall for any sign of Draco but he appeared to have vanished. She sighed. It had been too much to hope that he would want to spend the night with her, especially when there were so many witnesses. As she began to search the hall for Harry and Ginny, she noticed Professor Dumbledore standing at the end of the hall once again; His wand was pointed at his throat and she new there was about to be an announcement.

"If I could please get everyone who will competing in the costume contest to come up to the stage," he said, his voice easily drowning out any other noise in the hall. "If everyone would make a line along here please."

Hermione cursed. It had just dawned on her that Blaise had distracted her from entering her name in the contest; She had missed her chance. Perhaps if she appealed to Professor Dumbledore, he would accept her name as a late entry. After all, she (or Madam Malkins, rather) had put so much work into her costume, the least she could do was show it off.

"Hermione!"

She spun around to see Ginny hurrying over; Harry was several yards behind her, walking quickly to catch up. Ginny grabbed her by the wrist and began to pull her toward the stage.

"But Ginny I didn't enter the contest," she objected.

"Don't worry, I put your name in! Now come on!"

Hermione's heart leaped in her chest and she fought a smile. She had a chance after all, thanks to Ginny, although she wasn't sure how good her odds were after seeing Blaise's costume. As they made their way to the stage, Hermione spotted Draco, Blaise, and Lavender all lining up with the others.

"Can everyone hear me?" Professor Dumbledore asked the contestants, his voice no longer magnified.

Everyone nodded.

"The costume contest will be conducted as sort of a runway; By that, I mean that everyone will take a turn walking down the stage and doing something to impress the audience. _Please_," he emphasized, pressing fingertips to his lips, "keep your displays tasteful. The judges will be myself, Professor Sprout, and Professor McGonagall."

For the first time, Hermione noticed the other professors standing off to the side. Professor Sprout was dressed as a beautiful flower, the bottom of her dress resembling a gardening pot. Professor McGonagall wore an Egyptian headdress with sleek, black robes. The corner of Hermione's mouth curled upward; She was honestly surprised to see how much all the professors had gotten into the spirit of Halloween and how much thought they had put into their costumes.

"I'm so nervous," Hermione whispered to Ginny, who was standing at her side.

"You'll be fine," she encouraged. "Just don't walk off the stage and pretend like no one is watching."

Hermione groaned. "That's not very reassuring."

Professor Dumbledore continued, "Your name will not be announced, but whatever you are dressed as will. There will be a prize for best costume with first and second runner-ups, along with the most creative and scariest. No one can win in more than one category. Is everyone ready?"

There was a round of cheers from the contestants before Professor Dumbledore's voice was magnified across the hall again.

"Is everyone ready for our costume contest?" he asked.

A decent amount of applause erupted throughout the hall and a smile cracked across Dumbledore's face. Hermione could tell that he was excited about this particular event, even if he didn't say it. He was never one to shy away from a party.

"Then let us begin!" With these words, several fireworks shot into the air and exploded in a rain of glitter. There was another round of applause as the first contestant, a girl from Hufflepuff took the stage. Rather than Dumbledore, it was Professor Sprout who took over the commentating.

"A round of applause for Hogwarts' baby doll," she announced. Hermione might not have been able to guess what the girl's costume was, but as soon as Professor Sprout said 'baby doll' it definitely clicked in her mind. She wore a frilly dress that resembled a doily and her amber hair was parted in braided pigtails. Her make up made her eyes look impossibly big like those of a doll.

Next was the giant spider (Hermione was fairly certain that Ron was quivering somewhere in the audience) followed by a ghost and Seamus the alien. Hermione, Ginny, and Harry had fallen in line toward the end, several behind Blaise and Draco, so they would get to see most of the costumes before having to get on stage.

Seamus was the first contestant to do something other than simply pause at the end of the stage and model their costume; He paused, but then he started jumping up and down and waving his hands manically from side to side. Leave it to Seamus to get the crowd going; They applauded and screamed and whistled. It took Professor McGonagall walking onto the stage and dragging him off before he blew a kiss to the audience and stepped down. After that, people seemed to take it upon themselves to try and one up the contestant before them.

"Next we have a werewolf!" Professor Sprout squealed and Blaise strolled across the stage. He bobbed his head along to the music and began shuffling his feet as he walked. By the end of the runway he was full on dancing, grinding against the air, and he even threw in a handstand for good measure.

Needless to say, the crowd went wild.

"Here, straight from the sea, we have a pirate!"

Draco appeared far less into the costume contest than Blaise as he strutted across the stage and paused at the end. He winked and puckered his lips in a kiss at one of the girls near the stage who squealed and nearly fainted. Hermione rolled her eyes. _How dim some girls are..._

Hermione was bouncing on the balls of her feet nervously as more contestants took the stage. They watched another werewolf, a banshee, a grindylow, and a lion all take the stage before it was Ginny and Harry's turn. To Hermione's surprise, they were allowed to walk the stage together since their costumes went together.

With guidance from Hermione, Professor Sprout announced, "Prince Eric and Ariel."

Hermione giggled as Ginny bounced across the stage, half-dragging a reluctant Harry behind her. She cheered for them as loud as she could, almost screaming herself hoarse. Harry waved sheepishly at the crowd while Ginny danced around him with a smile. There was a little confusion among the crowd, but as Hermione gazed around she saw several looks of recognition among the half-bloods.

"What's your costume, dear?" Professor Sprout whispered.

"Princess Belle."

Professor Sprout announced Hermione's turn and she walked shakily onto the stage. She took deep breaths, trying to calm her nerves, but her only thoughts were of keeping her balance and not falling on her face. Her heart was pounding so hard she could hardly hear the music; If she had thought of dancing before, it was absolutely out of the question now. She stopped a few feet from the edge of the stage and twirled enthusiastically, sending the skirt of her dress flying. She added a curtsy and a nervous smile before turning and marching back across the stage.

"Thank Godric that's over," she gasped when she reached Ginny's side. "I feel like I'm going to vomit."

"You were great 'Mione," Ginny smiled and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "But don't get vomit on your dress."

Professor Dumbledore's voice was magnified once again, "Thank you all for your participation. The votes will be tallied and the winners announced shortly."

"Now what do we do?" Hermione asked.

Ginny snorted. "Dance, of course!"

Hermione watched as Harry and Ginny headed back out to the dance floor, which was now very crowded, and disappeared among the sea of moving bodies.

_But who am I supposed to dance with?_ Hermione thought to herself.

As if having read her thoughts, a body appeared at her side. She glanced over hopefully and felt her heart leap in her chest when she saw a long, white ponytail and a set jaw. He said nothing and did not meet her gaze, but offered her his arm.

"Are you asking me to dance?"

Draco growled. "Granger, you are the thickest person I've ever met."

Hermione scowled. "And you're the most self-obsessed git _I've_ ever met."

"Do you want to dance or not?" Draco rolled his eyes. "Because there are plenty of girls here worth my time."

She sucked her teeth. As much as she didn't want to admit it, Draco's comment bothered her. He turned to face her, his eyes narrowed. For a moment, she thought he might hit her or push her away; He was probably debating it, but he must have decided against it because he grabbed her hand.

"Come on," he urged.

Hermione followed without a fight. After all, it was what she wanted, to be dancing with Draco. She just wished there wasn't anyone watching. However, this was not a slow, romantic song; This was a faster, much funner song.

"Do you know how to dance to this?" Hermione asked, her eyebrows arched. It was difficult to imagine Draco doing anything fun.

"Was I born under a rock?" he asked and immediately started moving his hips.

Hermione couldn't help but smile.

...x...x...x...

Hermione hardly knew what to think. Her feet were killing her, even though she had abandoned her heels several songs ago, but Draco was still dancing. The music alternated from upbeat songs, to slow songs, to songs that got everyone dancing in a line. It was honestly the most fun she had had in a very long time, and she would never have guessed she would experience all this with Draco Malfoy.

"We are ready to announce our costume contest winners," she heard Professor McGonagall's voice resound across the hall. She was standing on the stage, wand pointed at her throat, and behind her was a row of trophies.

A wave of cheers followed.

"Now when we call your name, please step up to to claim your prize," she ordered.

It turned out that everyone got a small medallion for participation, while the winners got a golden trophy. Hermione and Draco drifted off to the side of the hall to watch the awards ceremony. Seamus won the most creative costume and did a back flip off the stage to show his enthusiasm, while the giant spider was deemed the scariest. It really was a terrifying costume considering it's bulbous head with pincers and its extra appendages. As expected, Blaise won the best overall costume with the grindylow and Draco as his runner ups.

There was a final round of applause for all the contestants before the dancing resumed. Draco, a smug smile on his face, returned to Hermione's side with his trophy in hand and handed it to her.

"You don't have to rub it in," she said, rolling her eyes.

"Of course I do," he smirked. "Besides, I don't deserve it. Blaise did all the work."

Hermione gasped. "Draco Malfoy admits he doesn't deserve something."

He shrugged. "Blaise is sure to steal it anyway. Do you want to dance again?"

"Honestly, I'm kind of tired," she admitted, wondering how much more torture her feet could endure in one night.

Draco stepped closer to her, his lips brushing her ear. "Do you want to do something else?"

She shivered. "What did you have in mind?"

"If I tell you to meet me in the Room of Requirement in an hour will you show up?"

Hermione's mouth fell open as she tried to form a response.


	10. The Room of Requirement

**WARNING: Graphic Content ahead. No, seriously, you've been warned. (If you're not into that kind of stuff, just skip this whole chapter.)**

It was a terrible idea. Hermione had known it from the beginning, and yet here she was, about to go through with it.

Hermione had slipped out of the Great Hall without telling Ginny or Harry where she was going; She doubted they would notice anyway, considering how much fun they were having. She bathed from the shoulders down, leaving her hair and her makeup as perfect as they had been at the Halloween ball, and dressed in simple clothes; As uncomfortable as it was to admit, her dress was simply impractical for anything she and Draco might be doing later on.

With only a few minutes left until the allotted hour was up, Hermione found herself standing in front of the entrance to the Room of Requirement. Her palms were sweating, her knees trembling. Knowing what lay beyond that door was making her heart race and it was proving difficult for her to breathe. Finally, after what seemed like ages, she grabbed the doorknob and pushed the door open.

Whatever she had expected to find, perhaps a small room with nothing but a bed, she was surprised by what she saw. It was a wide room with a high ceiling, bathed in warmth by a crackling fireplace. A plush rug covered the majority of the marble floor and a long sofa sat to her left. There was no bed, but that meant nothing; One could be conjured if Draco simply asked it of the Room.

"I was starting to think you weren't coming," Draco admitted.

He was standing near the fireplace, arms crossed over his chest. He too had changed out of his costume and now wore black slacks and a button-up green shirt. His hair was no longer down his back, but short and neatly combed as usual.

Hermione smiled bashfully. "It took longer than I thought to get out of that dress."

"You could have just asked," he smirked.

She watched him cross the room toward her and although she tried to move, her feet seemed to be glued to the floor. She was completely helpless as he stopped a few inches in front of her and lifted her chin carefully.

"I must have done something terrible for the Gods to punish me so." His lips were only a hair's breadth from hers and she could feel his breath on her skin.

"What do you mean?" she gasped, hardly able to find her words.

He smiled and brushed his lips softly across her cheek. "Why does it have to be you of all people? A mudblood."

Hermione stepped back, offended by his choice of words. "You said it yourself, Malfoy, there are plenty of girls here worth your time. Why don't you just go snog one of them?"

He growled. "Don't you understand? I can't!"

"And why not?" she asked, her brow raised.

"I've tried. But no matter what I do, or how beautiful they are, I only find myself thinking of you," he explained grimly. "It's a curse, really."

"The only problem is that I'm muggleborn?" Hermione asked as she relaxed slightly.

"And the fact that you're an insufferable know-it-all."

Hermione was about to open her mouth but she found it pressed against Draco's. Had he not placed his arms around her, she might have melted into the floor. In a swift motion, Draco lifted Hermione off the ground and she instinctively wrapped her legs around him, locking them together.

"Draco," she gasped as he bit her neck.

He walked them over to the sofa and laid Hermione down gently before sliding himself between her legs and hiking one of them up against his side. He ran his hand along her thigh and slipped it beneath the hem of her shirt as he kissed his way around her neck; Her skin was smooth as satin against his fingers. He met her mouth again, this time with more fervor, and let his weight crash down on her.

Hermione's body was on fire. Feeling Draco's form pressed against hers was sending waves of heat through her core. She felt Draco's hands find their way around her body and he rocked his hips forward again; Even through her pants, his erection was clearly notable and she felt her stomach flip uneasily.

Draco slowly inched Hermione's shirt up, exposing her stomach and lacy white bra. He moaned softly, too softly for Hermione to notice, as he began to kiss and nibble at her pale skin. He kissed her chest, carefully moving aside her bra to expose one of her nipples so he could suck it into his mouth. Her other breast he caressed with his hand.

"Draco," she whispered.

He ignored his name and climbed back up her body to kiss her again. He unbuttoned his trousers and pulled them down, exposing his misshapen boxers. He grabbed Hermione's hand and brought it down to his groin, but if he had expected her to start pleasuring him, he was disappointed. She jerked her hand back and looked at him wildly.

"What's wrong?" he asked as he reached for her hand again.

Hermione bit her bottom lip nervously. How was she supposed to tell Draco that she had never done any of this before; She knew how everything worked from an anatomical standpoint, but she had no first-hand experience with any of this and she wasn't exactly sure what to do. This was now horribly embarrassing.

"I-I don't know," she stammered and began to push her way from him.

"You have done this before, right?" he asked, irritated.

Hermione shook her head. She was on the verge of tears, but she blinked hard to dull the urge.

"Bloody fucking hell," Draco groaned and ran his hand over his face. He took a deep breath and shook his head. "The Gods must think this is real bloody funny."

One look in Hermione's eyes told him that he was about to cross the line and lose his chance at continuing. She looked frightened, which was utterly bizarre to Draco, but if this was what he wanted he was going to have to proceed with caution; He was going to have to be more careful than he had ever been in his life. Slowly, he reached around Hermione and pulled her body toward him.

They were nose to nose, staring in each others' eyes. Hermione was terrified to say anything for fear of bursting into tears, and Draco was trying not to bugger everything up. After a moment's indecision, he closed his eyes and softly met her lips. To his relief, she returned his kiss.

"I didn't realize you were- I thought you and Potter had-" Draco said between kisses. "We can go slow."

After a little coaxing, Hermione let Draco touch her again. Something in his manner had changed and when he kissed her, it was like he actually meant it. He unbuttoned her trousers and slid his hand gently beneath her knickers, all the while kissing her lips. He gently nudged at her legs, parting them so he could gain access and began to massage her virgin flesh. He parted her folds carefully until he found her clit; As soon as he touched it Hermione moaned and grabbed tightly at the fabric of Draco's shirt.

Within minutes, Draco's hand was soaking wet and he could feel his dick throbbing. He wanted to bury himself inside her and fuck her until she screamed for him to stop, but he refrained. Instead, he buried his fingers, pushing them deeper and deeper until she whimpered.

_Gods_, he thought as he grabbed at her hand. If he didn't find release soon, he might explode. He pushed his boxers out of the way and guided her hand around his shaft. He moved it up and down slowly, putting pressure on her fingers so that she squeezed him exactly how he liked it.

Hermione's insides were flipping erratically as her hand closed around Draco's dick. It was hard and swollen and as her fingers rolled over the head, she found it wet. Draco moaned and sucked in a sharp breath of air as she stroked faster; Judging by his reaction, she had to be doing it right.

Draco unbuttoned his shirt and tossed it aside, kicking off his trousers immediately after. He then helped Hermione out of her clothes, kissing her body each time a new bit of exposed flesh was revealed. He easily unclasped her bra with one hand and watched as it fell aside. There was no nothing separating them; Every bit of their hot flesh was exposed and the feeling was enough to send Draco into a frenzy.

"Are you enjoying yourself?" Draco whispered as he pulled himself on top of her.

"Yes," she smiled.

"Good," he kissed her neck. "Do you think you're ready?"

She nodded nervously and felt the tip of Draco's erection brush against the most sensitive part of her. Her stomach did another funny somersault. She met Draco's gaze and the look in his eyes surprised her; He looked... _uncertain_. She only had a moment to ponder this before he pushed his hips forward and buried his head inside her.

The pain was more than she had been expecting, and it was all very uncomfortable. She tried to push the pain aside as Draco pumped his hips, thrusting himself inside her again and again, but she wound up scraping her nails down his back unintentionally. Thankfully, he didn't seem to mind.

"Are you alright?" he whispered shakily.

Hermione nodded and squeezed her eyes shut. "I'm fine."

Draco could feel himself nearing his climax and he picked up the pace. Hermione was gasping and moaning with every thrust and he grabbed on to her hips to brace himself. As he exploded inside her, he felt an unfamiliar feeling erupt throughout his entire body, starting in his middle and working its way to his fingers and toes. He was sweaty and breathless, and he had just done something that no one else on the planet would ever do. He had taken Granger's innocence as well as his own.

...x...x...x...

Draco had been as tasteful as possible about cleaning himself and the sofa. After all, this whole thing had been his fault. Instead of simply leaving without a word as he usually did, he surprised Hermione by laying next to her on the sofa in his boxers and rubbing her hair for a while. It was possibly the kindest and most unDracolike thing he could have done, and Hermione was extremely thankful for it.

"I guess we'll just go back to not talking again, right?" Hermione asked in a hushed voice. "Pretend none of this happened."

"What makes you say that?"

"You got what you wanted; There's no reason for you to keep torturing yourself now."

"I don't think it's that simple," he said.

Hermione looked up into his eyes. "I don't understand."

The corner of Draco's mouth curled into a smile. "I mean, I think it's going to be harder than ever to stay away from you."


	11. Hermione's Distress

Hermione would have been content to sleep in the Room of Requirement if it meant she could sleep in Draco's arms, but she knew that Ginny would start to worry if she never showed up to the common room. Besides, Scourgify was not an acceptable form of bathing in her opinion, and she desperately wanted to soak in a warm bath. After they had both dressed, they stepped out into the cool corridor together and prepared to go their separate ways.

"Do you need me to walk you to the Gryffindor common room?"

Hermione shook her head. "That's alright. I can manage."

He looked slightly relieved; As much as he had thoroughly enjoyed being with Hermione, he didn't know if he could bare being seen with her. He wasn't ready for the rumors and the implications. He doubted he would ever be ready.

Draco stepped toward Hermione and pulled her into his arms. She molded to his body and buried her face in his chest. They stood like this for a long moment, Draco not knowing what he could say after everything that had transpired. Perhaps there was nothing he could say; Instead, he lifted her chin so that he could meet her lips with his. It was a soft, sweet kiss like a goodnight kiss should be.

"Goodnight, Granger."

Hermione reluctantly watched Draco disappear down the corridor before she turned and headed toward the Gryffindor common room. Her mind was spinning, images from the night they had spent together flashing through her mind at an impressive rate. She saw him dressed as a pirate dancing with her, him standing by the fireplace when she first entered the Room of Requirement, him above her asking her if she was ready for him. Her stomach did a somersault and she felt tingles radiate down her legs. She wondered how long it would be before she could think about him naked without being overcome by that feeling.

"Where the bloody hell have you been?" Ginny barked as soon as Hermione stepped through the portrait hole. "I've been worried sick!"

She had changed out of her costume and was waiting patiently on the couch in front of the fireplace. Upon seeing Hermione, she immediately leaped to her feet and hurried across the room.

"Sorry, mum," Hermione responded defensively. "I took a walk."

Ginny raised her brow suspiciously. "You could have at least told me where you were going. Harry and I looked for you for nearly an hour before we came back here."

"I'm sorry. It was a spontaneous decision," she said.

"Are you going to bed now?" Ginny asked.

"I actually think I'm going to take a bath. My feet are killing me." _As well as other things, _Hermione thought.

"Do you want me to wait up so we can talk?" Ginny's look was one of genuine concern.

Hermione put on the most believable smile she could manage. "That's okay, Gin. We can talk tomorrow."

...x...x...x...

_DPOV_

Draco took his time walking back to the Slytherin common room. Truthfully, he did not want to arrive. He would have much rather been back in the Room of Requirement with Hermione's gorgeous, naked body lying next to his. He could hardly believe what he had just done, much less that he had done it with Granger; He had given something to her that he had never given to any other girl and taken something away that he could never return. It was a strangely satisfying, yet horrifying thought. And there was nothing he could do about it now.

"Where've you been, mate?" Blaise asked when Draco finally strode into the common room. He had not bothered to take off his costume, probably because he needed assistance. "The last time I saw you, you were dancing with Granger. And then you disappeared."

Draco shot him a dangerous look. "Could you _not_ announce that particular fact to the whole of Slytherin?"

"Sorry," Blaise said, dropping his voice. "I didn't think it was a big deal."

Draco shook his head, eager to change the topic. "Why are you still wearing that?"

"It's comfortable! I'm so soft and fluffy."

"That's disgusting. You can't get it off can you?"

Blaise sighed. "I tried, but I need help."

"You're lucky you're my best mate." Draco laughed.

...x...x...x...

It was nearly impossible for Hermione not to glance over at the Slytherin house table during breakfast the next morning. Considering that the Halloween ball had continued into the early hours of the morning, most people were still in bed leaving the Great Hall looking bare. However, Draco was there with Blaise, and they were joking over their plates.

"Are you alright, Hermione?" Harry asked softly.

"I'm fine." She pushed the food on her plate around with a fork.

"You look sick."

She shook her head. "Just tired."

Ginny plopped down beside Harry suddenly and planted a kiss on his cheek.

"Good morning," she said as she stretched. "Sorry I'm late; I was having a particularly fantastic dream and did not want to wake up."

"Was it about me?" Harry asked curiously.

"You're always in my dreams," she winked.

Hermione stifled a laugh and finally received Ginny's attention. "Are you feeling well, 'Mione? You look a little pale."

"I told her the same thing," Harry explained.

"Like I told him, I'm fine," Hermione argued. "Just tired from last night is all."

"Would you be up for a trip to Hogsmeade?" Ginny asked.

She shook her head. "I have a paper due in Defense Against the Dark Arts and I was going to spend the day working on it."

The color drained from Harry's face. "That's due tomorrow? I haven't even started!"

"What's due tomorrow?" Ron asked as he took across from Hermione. He was wearing a maroon turtleneck, but even with its high collar she could see a brightly colored bruise on his neck. Apparently, she was not the only one who disappeared to have fun last night.

After trying for nearly half an hour to eat more than a few bites of food, Hermione stuffed two rolls in her bag for later.

"I'll catch up with you lot later," she assured them before turning to leave.

She did not know where she was headed, but anywhere was better than the Great Hall. She wanted to get away from her friends, who were already aware that something was wrong, and away from Draco, who had managed to avoid meeting her gaze all morning. It was all incredibly unfair, from having spent the night with him to having fallen asleep thinking about him to dreaming about him; No one should be able to occupy her mind every waking minute of the day, especially Draco Malfoy. And yet, she couldn't shake him from her mind.

_Perhaps last night was a huge bloody mistake,_ she thought.

She wandered the corridors, not wanting to go to the library because that would be the first place her friends would look for her, and not wanting to retreat to the common room. She debated going outside and enjoying the sunlight, but it was a very chilly morning and she wasn't in the mood to be cold. After nearly half an hour, she found herself at the entrance to the Room of Requirement. Since she had no destination in mind, her subconscious had brought her to the only place she wanted to be.

Her eyes began to sting. Yes, it was horribly unfair, the whole stinking lot of it. Why did she have to feel this way about Draco Malfoy? He was literally one of the only guys in Hogwarts that she would never be able to go public with; He would never be able to hug her in the corridors the way couples did or kiss her in front of his friends. They would never be anything more than this, a secret shag in the middle of the night in the most hidden of hideouts that Hogwarts had to offer. She couldn't even confide in her best friends, because they would judge her and none of them would understand. In this, she was utterly alone with Draco and she doubted he would come running to comfort her.

...x...x...x...

Hermione thought about skipping Potions the next day; She really, really considered it. She had even thought about going to the hospital wing after Herbology so that she would have a legitimate excuse, but her habit for perfect attendance eventually won out and she strode into Professor Slughorn's classroom with her head held high. She took a seat, absolutely refusing to look to her left, and opened her Potions books.

"You look better today," Harry smiled as he took a seat beside her. "Get a good night's rest."

Hermione grinned. "I did actually. Your girlfriend offered to paint my nails and I did her hair." She waved her coral-colored nails in Harry's face.

"Well, I'm glad to see you looking better. I was worried you were coming down with something," he admitted. "Can I copy your answer to question 3?"

She rolled her eyes. "So you fake compassion for my well-being just to copy my homework. You, sir, have stooped."

He laughed. "No, no, that's not true. I genuinely care whether you are sick or not, and I also need the answer to question 3."

She handed him her roll of parchment. "I guess that book of yours doesn't have _all_ the answers."

Harry had just finished copying Hermione's answer when Professor Slughorn hurried into the classroom.

"I am very sorry I'm late," he apologized as he set down his briefcase and began to pull out some documents. "There was an accident down on the second floor, but it's all been taken care of."

"What kind of accident?" someone from the back of the classroom asked.

Professor Slughorn waved his hand dismissively. "The Headmaster thinks Peeves shattered several chandeliers. Nothing to worry about, it's all been taken care of."

"That could have ended nastily," Hermione whispered under her breath. "Imagine if one had landed on a student!"

Harry chuckled. "That was probably his goal."

"Today we are going to talk about a very important potion," Professor Slughorn explained. "It is know as the truth telling potion. Can anyone tell me its name?"

As expected, Hermione's hand was the first in the air.

"Yes, Ms. Granger?"

"Veritaserum."

"That is correct. Can you name some of the properties of this potion?"

"Veritaserum is a colorless, odorless potion that forces its drinker to tell the truth. It is often used in trials by the Ministry of Magic because it is more reliable than occlumency."

"Excellent," Professor Slughorn smiled. "Today I have something different, and hopefully fun planned. In a moment I will be taking volunteers to drink a tiny bit of Veritaserum; We will then ask them some fun questions, nothing too incriminating, and see what their answers will be."

The room erupted with excitement and people immediately started volunteering their friends. Professor Slughorn seemed pleased by the amount of interest in his little experiment and immediately set up several chairs at the front of the room.

"I'd say we have enough potion here for three volunteers," he said, holding up the little vial to look at it. "Now, who wants to go first?"

At first no one raised their hand.

"Go on, Granger," Draco said. "You volunteer for everything else."

Several people snickered and Hermione cut her eyes at Draco.

"If you're so cocky, why don't you do it? Too afraid for people to know the truth?"

Draco's jaw hardened.

"I volunteer," Hermione said and stood at her desk. She made her way down the aisle and sat in one of the chairs, arms crossed over her chest.

"Two more volunteers," Professor Slughorn. "Who is it going to be?"

"I'll do it," Seamus said enthusiastically and jumped out of his chair. He took a seat at Hermione's side and gave Dean a thumbs up.

"Gryffindors are known to be the bravest of the bunch," Professor Slughorn admired. "Can we get a Slytherin up here?"

At first no one moved. But then, slowly, Draco stood from his seat. Hermione's eyes popped as she watched him make his way up the aisle and take a seat on Seamus's other side.

"Very well, we're ready to begin," Professor Slughorn said and he unstoppered the vial.


	12. Veritaserum

"Because they are taking such a small quantity, the effects will only last about half an hour, which will be plenty of time for us to ask them a couple of questions," Professor Slughorn explained after he set the empty vial down. "Please keep your questions tasteful; Don't ask anything that you wouldn't answer yourself."

Hermione was regretting this decision; How could she have let Draco get to her like that? He was the only reason she had volunteered in the first place. She had not considered the possibility of having to admit to things she didn't want to, but now it was becoming a reality. She just hoped for the love of Merlin that no one asked her anything too embarrassing. She would much rather be seated in her desk asking the questions, than answering them.

Harry was the first person to raise his hand, and Hermione eyed him nervously.

"Yes, Harry. Ask your question," Professor Slughorn instructed.

"Hermione, what's your biggest fear?"

The words spilled out of her mouth before she could stop them. "Failing an exam."

A few people laughed, but no one had expected anything different; She shot him an appreciative look.

Dean raised his hand next.

"Seamus, did you or did you not eat my last chocolate frog a couple of days ago and blame it on Ron?"

"I did," Seamus said.

"I knew it!" Dean exclaimed. "Sorry, Ron!"

Seamus slapped himself on the forehead and several people snickered. Hermione's nerves were subsiding now that the questions were being asked; It appeared that people were going to be respectful of their privacy after all.

"Draco, what is your greatest aspiration in life?" Blaise asked with a laugh.

"To be one of the most influential wizards in the world," he smiled. "And by most influential, I mean richest."

The Slytherins laughed, but most of the Gryffindors simply rolled their eyes. Apparently, Draco really was as self-centered as he came off to be.

"Seamus, who is your favorite professor and why?"

"Madam Hooch because flying is the only class in which I've managed not to blow something up."

It took everyone a moment to calm down and stop laughing so they could proceed with the questions. It was Lavender who raised her hand next.

"Hermione, who do you think is the hottest guy at Hogwarts?"

Hermione's face flushed and she bit her tongue. All the girls immediately burst into excited whispers, either trying to guess who Hermione would say or admitting how jealous they were that they hadn't thought of the question first. As hard as Hermione tried to redirect her mind, the only person she could think of was Draco. She imagined kissing him, how it felt when he touched her body, how she could see each of his muscles ripple with effort when he was above her, thrusting himself into her. The uncomfortable tingles erupted in her stomach and radiated down her legs again and she squeezed her eyes shut.

"Come on, Hermione! You can't fight it forever," another girl said.

It was true. It was becoming harder and harder to suppress her answer to the point it was almost painful. Finally, when she could withhold it no longer, the word spilled from her mouth without her consent.

"Draco," she said.

Hermione slapped her hand over her mouth just as the entire room burst into an uproar. There were laughs, and gasps, and catcalls. Lavender appeared genuinely sympathetic for having asked her question, but the damage was done. She was absolutely terrified to look at Draco for fear that he was angry and she couldn't even meet Harry or Ron's eyes for fear of their judgment. Instead, she hid her face behind her hands.

"Draco, how do you feel about that?" Blaise asked excitedly.

"About what?" Draco said, eluding the question.

"That Hermione thinks you're the hottest bloke at Hogwarts."

He shrugged and tried to keep his expression stoic. "It's not her fault; I _am_ incredibly handsome."

Hermione heard Ron snort at this comment and several other Gryffindors laughed. At least he had detracted the attention away from her, and she was grateful even if that had not been his intention.

"Seamus, what's one thing you've done that would have earned you detention if you'd been caught?" a Slytherin boy asked.

Seamus laughed. "Just one? Well, I did set the curtains in the Gryffindor tower on fire last year."

Nearly everyone laughed, especially the Gryffindors who recalled the event. Seamus had singed off at least three feet of the curtains and Professor McGonagall was furious when she saw then; Luckily, he was never blamed.

"Don't worry, Mr. Finnigan, nothing you say will be held against you," Professor Slughorn assured him when he saw the worried look in Seamus's eyes. He sighed with relief.

"Draco, who is the most attractive girl in school?" Pansy said as she batted her eyelashes.

_Please, Godric, don't say me_, Hermione thought. _For the love of Merlin, don't say me._

Draco's jaw hardened. How dare Parkinson ask him that question when she already knew it wasn't her? He had told her countless times that he did not like her, and would never like her, as anything more than a friend and yet, she refused to leave him alone.

"Not you," Draco answered sharply, hoping this would be a sufficient answer to overcome the power of the Veritaserum.

Blaise, as well as several other Slytherins howled with laughter. Pansy, who looked completely unaffected by Draco's remark, sat back in her chair and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Then who is?" she pressed.

Draco felt the answer on his tongue, as if it were tangible, and he had the urge to spit it out. If he jumped up and ran out of the classroom, he might make it to the corridor before the answer was ripped out of him. But it was a long shot.

He bit hard on his knuckle just as Hermione's name slipped out of his mouth. Thankfully, it was a jumbled murmur and no one caught it. But Pansy wasn't backing down that easily.

"What was that, Draco? I'm afraid no one heard you." An evil smile curled its way across her face.

Draco could no longer fight the power of the Veritaserum.

"It's Granger. ARE YOU HAPPY NOW YOU BLOODY INSUFFERABLE COW?" Draco snapped in rage. He leaped off his chair and stormed down the aisle, stopping only to collect his bag before disappeared out of the classroom.

Everyone turned to Hermione, whose face was impossibly red. Before anyone could ask her how she felt about Draco's answer, Professor Slughorn stepped up.

"Well, it seems this experiment has been almost a complete success," he said and ushered Hermione and Seamus to take their seats. "Let's give our volunteers a round of applause, shall we?"

...x...x...x...

"So when were you going to tell us that you have the hots for Draco bloody Malfoy?" Ron barked. "What are you thinking, Hermione?"

"Back off, Ron. She didn't say she liked him, just that she thinks he's hot," Harry warned.

Ron huffed. "What's the bloody difference? He's a wanker."

"Physical attractiveness has nothing to do with the merit of someone's character, Ronald," Hermione snapped. "He can be a _wanker_ and still be attractive."

Ron shook his head. "I'm not buying it. And was it just a coincidence that he said your name too?"

"Perhaps he has an appreciation for intelligence and..."

"You can lie to yourself all you want, Hermione. I'm a man, I know how we think. He isn't into your _essay writing_ ability."

"ENOUGH, Ron!" Harry growled. "Unless you want us to force some Veritaserum down your throat and prod embarrassing answers out of you as well."

Ron opened his mouth to speak, but closed it again. "I'll see you two back in the common room."

He pushed his plate away and hurried away from the Gryffindor house table. Hermione watched him storm out of the Great Hall, nearly shoving someone out of his way in the entrance hall.

"Thank you, Harry," Hermione said as a single tear slid down her cheek.

He forced a smile. "Don't worry about him, Hermione. He's just jealous."

She forced a nod. "It was a completely harmless question. I just don't understand why he's taking it this way. So what if I think Malfoy is attractive?"

Harry shrugged. "If it makes you feel better, it doesn't bother me."

Hermione smiled and wiped her cheek. "Thanks."

...x...x...x...

After leaving Potions, Draco headed to the Slytherin common room where Blaise found him sulking in front of the fireplace.

"It wasn't a big deal, mate," he said encouragingly. "After seeing her Saturday night, I might have said the same thing."

Draco scoffed. "Then it should have been you up there."

"Seriously, no one even talked about it after you left," Blaise assured him. "Although I'm pretty sure Parkinson likes Hermione quite a bit less now, if that's possible."

Draco's didn't even want to hear about Parkinson. If she never spoke to him again, Draco would be perfectly fine with that. In fact, he preferred it.

"You know, I've never hit a girl before, but I'm considering it," Draco mumbled.

"Drake, it wasn't Granger's fault!"

"Who said anything about hitting Granger? I'm talking about Pansy."

Blaise burst into laughter. "Only if I'm there to watch it. Now come on, I'm hungry."

As they stepped into the Great Hall, Draco's eyes traveled involuntarily to the Gryffindor house table. Even at a distance he could tell that Hermione was upset; Her face was blotchy and she appeared to be arguing with Weasel. He felt a twinge of anger in the pit of his stomach.

"You alright, Drake?" Blaise asked.

"I'm fine," he answered dryly. "Just deciding if I'd rather take out my anger on Weasel than Parkinson."

Blaise followed Draco's gaze and found Hermione sitting at the Gryffindor table. It _did_ look like Weasley was yelling at her, and she looked like she was crying.

"Come on, Drake," he said, pulling on his best mate's sleeve. "You don't want to make a scene."

"And if I do?"

Blaise rolled his eyes. "He's not worth it. You'd probably get three months of detention for starting a fight in the Great Hall."

"I wouldn't be starting it if he swings first," Draco assured him.

Blaise shook his head. "Now's not the time, mate."

...x...x...x...

"Drake," Blaise whispered as he nudged his arm. "She's leaving."

Blaise was pointing across the hall at Hermione who had stood and gathered her things.

"And?" Draco said, pretending he didn't care.

"Now's your chance," Blaise encouraged. "Go talk to her."

Draco looked at him hesitantly. "Why in Salazar's name would I want to do that?"

"Please... You think I'm that dense?" Blaise raised his brow. "You're willing to pummel Weasel for yelling at her and you don't want to talk to her?"

Draco shook his head. "You know I can't."

"You can't or you don't want to?"

He groaned. "Of course I want to but..."

"Then what the bloody hell are you waiting for?" Blaise asked, furrowing his brow. "Get off your lazy arse and go!"


	13. Draco's Biggest Secret

**WARNING: ADULT CONTENT! **

"Granger," he called, trying not to let his voice carry too much. "Granger!"

Hermione paused and turned to find Draco hurrying after her. She didn't know whether to smile or burst into tears, especially after Ron had treated her like some kind of villain all afternoon. The only person she wanted to hold her and comfort her was Draco, but she also knew that was not likely to happen. It was a miracle he was even speaking to her here.

"Are you alright?" he asked uncomfortably as he caught up to her.

Her eyes were still red from her fight with Ron but she forced a smile. "Better now."

"Was Weasel giving you hell?"

She nodded and bit her bottom lip to keep it from quivering.

"Are you sure you're alright?" Draco asked, taking a cautious step forward. "You look like you're going to cry."

Her eyes had begun to sting and she could feel them filling with tears; Any second now they would break free from their boundaries and find their way down her face. Draco looked terrified, as though he'd never been faced with a crying girl before.

"Come on," he said as he strode passed her. "Follow me."

Hermione blinked hard and obliged, glad that Draco was now ahead of her and couldn't see her crying. She followed him halfway down the corridor before he tried a door to their left; It was unlocked. He peered inside and, upon determining it was empty, ushered Hermione through the doorway. It was a small, rarely used classroom, and at the moment it was pitch black; Draco quickly found a lantern on the wall and lit it so that it cast a dim light on them.

He then turned to Hermione just in time to see her wiping her cheeks with her sleeve.

"I'm sorry, Draco," she said softly. "I shouldn't have volunteered..."

Draco shook his head. "It's not your fault, Granger. And I'm flattered that you think I am so attractive."

Hermione made a sound in between a laugh and a sob. "But you were so mad..."

"I was mad at Parkinson, not at you," he explained.

"You can't think I'm the prettiest girl here," Hermione said, shaking her head.

"Before Saturday, I didn't," Draco sighed. "I have to admit, you did look amazing in that dress, but you looked a lot better out of it."

Hermione cleared her throat. "So, I'm pretty now because you saw me naked."

He shook his head in frustration. "It was more than that, Granger."

"Was it because I was a virgin? You probably haven't been with many of them," Hermione said, embarrassed by her own words.

"No, you were the first," Draco said shortly. "And I think that has something to do with it."

Hermione looked away. _How romantic,_ she thought. _I'm pretty because I lost my innocence._

"You didn't think I was pretty before?"

"_Before_ I thought you were hideous and annoying, but that was just because you're a mudblood," Draco explained. "After you kissed me, I started seeing you differently; You have nice eyes and lips."

"And now what do you think?" she asked.

"You know I wasn't lying in Potions," he assured her. "I think you're the prettiest girl at this school."

"Because I gave you my innocence," she added.

Draco growled. "GOD DAMNIT, Granger! You haven't stopped to consider that it was my first time too, have you?"

Hermione's eyes popped and the blood drained from Draco's face in an instant. "W-what?"

"It's always about you," he whispered, massaging his temples. "Yes, Granger, you took something from me too."

"But I-" Hermione had no idea what to say. The thought of Draco being a virgin that night and yet knowing exactly how to touch her body was difficult for her to comprehend, but it all made sense now: the uncertainty in his eyes just before he took her, the way he said it would be difficult to stay away from her, and why he thought she was so beautiful now. She had been and would always be his first, just as he would hers.

"Just forget I said anything," he said shortly.

Hermione slowly made her way closer to him, longing to touch him. She wanted to feel his lips, his hands, his arms. With this new revelation and her pent up frustration, the only thing she wanted to do was feel him close to her. Draco seemed to realize what she was doing and he pulled her into him with a sigh.

"Can I see you tonight?" he asked into her hair. "In the Room of Requirement."

Hermione nodded. "If you kiss me now."

She felt him shake with silent laughter as he tilted her chin up; He met her lips with his, soft at first but then more passionately. He carried her over to one of the desks and sat her on its edge, almost moaning when she wrapped her legs around him and pulled him toward her. It appeared she was just as excited about the Room of Requirement as he was.

...x...x...x...

This time Hermione did not hesitate outside the Room of Requirement, but hurried in and closed the door behind her. She was surprised to find it entirely different than the last time and she almost laughed; It was a small room with nothing but a fireplace and a large, four-poster bed draped with romantic, sheer fabric. Draco was no where in sight, which meant that this room was the result of her imagination.

"Nice, Granger," Draco said behind her. "A little straight-forward aren't we?"

Hermione blushed. "I thought you were already here so I wasn't thinking of anything."

"Except a nice shag," he corrected. "The room must have done the rest."

"You're very insensitive, you know. Have you considered that I might think of this as something more than a nice shag?"

"Once or twice," he admitted.

He crossed the room in a few swift steps and kissed her mouth before she could say anything else. She tangled her fingers in his hair and felt herself lifted off the ground; She was not surprised when Draco walked her over to the bed and laid her down.

Before he climbed in next to her, Draco pulled his shirt off over his head and tossed it aside. He considered taking his trousers off as well, but decided he would make Hermione work for it if she really wanted it. After kicking off his shoes, he crawled into bed and nestled himself between Hermione's legs.

He kissed his way around her neck, working his hands beneath her shirt and pulling it up to reveal her bare stomach. Sliding toward the foot of the bed, he kissed a trail from her chest to the waistband of her trousers before easily sliding them off. Hermione moaned softly at the feel of his hands against her bare thighs.

"I want to try something," he said. "Close your eyes."

Hermione did not have to be told twice; She would rather have her eyes closed anyway.

She felt Draco's fingers tease the lining of her knickers before those too were stripped away, leaving her bottom half naked and vulnerable. She could already feel her body warming up, her stomach doing flips in expectation. And then she felt it.

"Oh God!" she gasped and her eyes flew open. Looking down, she could see Draco's tongue making its way slowly over her swollen nub, sending spasms of pleasure through her body. She moaned and grabbed at the comforter. "Oh my God, Draco!"

Draco smiled and took her clit into his mouth, sucking it softly. This made her writhe beneath him and he grabbed her legs to steady her. Hearing her moan and groan made his stomach tighten and he could feel his dick swelling beneath him, ready for attention, but he kept licking and sucking on her delicate skin.

"Oh... Draco... Please..." she gasped and began grinding her hips against his tongue. He knew she was close, even if she didn't and he took her clit into his mouth once more. His fingers slid easily inside her seeings as she was already wet and he pumped them slowly as he continued to suck on her nub until her legs were shaking.

_So close, _he thought and he sucked faster, rolling his tongue against her clit while it was in his mouth.

Hermione screamed as an orgasm ripped through her body. It started precisely where Draco's mouth was and shot through her body like a wave. Draco pumped his fingers a little harder and continued to suck as she rode out her orgasm before gently releasing her.

He climbed up the bed to her side. "Did you like that?" he asked.

"Bloody hell, Draco," she gasped, still recovering. "That was incredible."

He cracked a smile and kissed her lips; He had wiped his mouth on the comforter but the faint scent of her remained on his skin. As his lips slowly moved against hers, he grabbed her hand and brought it down onto the hard lump in his pants. She squeezed it softly, making him moan.

"Is it my turn?" she whispered into Draco's ear, sending a chill down his back.

"Please, fortheloveoffuckingSalazar, yes," he begged.

Draco helped her unbutton his trousers, and Hermione slid them off revealing his strangely misshapen boxers. And she froze.

"You don't have to if you don't want to," Draco assured her with a notable amount of disappointment in his voice.

"I-I want to," Hermione nodded. "I just... I'm not sure what to..."

"You don't have to be nervous," he assured her and lifted himself off the bed so that he could slide his boxers off. "If you have questions, just ask. How else will you learn?"

Hermione looked bashfully at Draco's erection and blushed. She had never seen another penis, so she had nothing to compare it to, but it looked huge. It's head was large and as she recalled from last time, her hand could not close all the way around the shaft. She bit her lip nervously, but decided that she could at least try and set to work.

"Fuck... fuck... I thought you said you didn't know what to do," Draco moaned as Hermione slowly took him into her mouth again. "God... damnit... Granger."

She had to admit, it really wasn't as hard as she had expected it to be. She moved her hand in sync with her mouth, taking in as much of his dick as she could without gagging. Draco grabbed the back of her head softly and moved her along a little quicker, which Hermione enjoyed because Draco moaned louder and his legs trembled.

"Oh.. bloody fuck... Stop, stop," he said urgently. Another few seconds and he would have exploded in Hermione's mouth; Although that would not have been a terrible ending, he wasn't through with her. "Come up here."

Draco climbed on top of Hermione and positioned himself; He was so ready to be inside her, to pound her as hard as he could, that he almost didn't stop when she told him to wait.

"What's wrong?" he asked, his throbbing dick in his hand.

"Will you go slow?"

"I'll try. But I can't promise anything," he smirked.

Hermione braced herself by grabbing onto the pillow beneath her head and tried to relax as Draco slowly thrust himself inside her. It was no where near as excruciating as the first time, but it was still a little uncomfortable at first. True to his word, Draco tried to go slow, at least for a few minutes. He ground his hips against hers, burying every bit of him inside her until he felt himself heading toward his climax.

"Shit, shit," he whispered under his breath as he fucked her faster. He put every bit of his energy into the last few thrusts before he shuddered with the force of his release. He then slumped down onto the bed and closed his eyes.


	14. The Ultimatum

If only Hermione had bothered to look in a mirror before making her way back to the Gryffindor common room, she could have done something about the purple bruise on the side of her neck before Ginny saw it.

"Hermione!" Ginny gasped, her eyes wide. "What is that?"

She furrowed her brow. "What are you talking about?"

Ginny looked around nervously; There were still a few people lounging around the common room, either playing a final round of wizards chess or sitting in front of the fire. She stepped closer to Hermione and dropped her voice.

"That mark on your neck," she whispered. "Is it what I think it is?"

Hermione felt her stomach drop uneasily and her hand went involuntarily to the side of her neck. It was tender beneath her fingertips.

"It is!" Ginny whispered excitedly. "Come with me!"

Ginny pulled a speechless Hermione toward the portrait hole, knowing that both their sleeping chambers were currently occupied. They hurried down the corridor toward the girls' lavatory, and no sooner had they stepped through the doorway, Ginny squealed.

"You liar!" she exclaimed. "You told me you hadn't been snogging anyone when it's obvious you have! You couldn't even tell your best friend?"

"It's slightly disturbing how excited you are about this," Hermione said, her hand still covering her neck.

"Are you going to look at it or not?" Ginny asked, gesturing to the mirror.

Hermione took a deep breath and slowly lowered her hand. There, perfectly visible on the side of her neck was a bright bruise the size of a sickle.

"Oh my God," Hermione whispered.

"Now are you going to tell me who it is you've been sneaking off with?" Ginny questioned.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," Hermione sighed, continuing to look at the hickey in the mirror.

Ginny huffed. "Of course I'll believe you. At this point I'd believe you if you told me it was Professor Snape."

Hermione pretended to gag and they both burst into laughter.

"You have to swear you won't tell anyone!" Hermione said urgently.

"Okay, okay," Ginny said, unable to hide her smile.

"SWEAR IT!"

Ginny groaned impatiently. "Okay, I swear I won't tell anyone."

Hermione was unconvinced. "Not even Harry!"

"Not even Harry," she repeated.

Hermione looked around nervously, tempted to check all the stalls to make sure they were empty, but she knew they were. She bounced on the balls of her feet, trying to build up her courage but her nerves were making her nauseous; It was better to get it off her chest than to harbor it inside.

"I haven't just been snogging him," Hermione admitted uncomfortably. "We've done other things as well."

Ginny's eyes bulged. "You _shagged_ him?"

Hermione's blush instantly gave her away and Ginny squealed excitedly again.

"Who is it?" she begged.

Hermione took a deep breath in through her nose and exhaled through her mouth. "It's Draco."

At first Ginny said nothing. Then, the corners of her mouth began to curl upward slowly and she giggled. And then she was laughing, her shoulders shaking so hard that she had to hold on to the sink to stable herself.

"Oh Godric, Hermione!" she wailed, wiping the tears from her eyes. "That's hilarious! No, seriously, you had me going there for a second; I almost believed you!"

After another few minutes, Ginny recovered from her laughing fit. "Okay, all joking aside, who is it?"

Keeping her voice as steady as possible, Hermione answered, "Gin, I was serious. It's Draco."

This time, Ginny did not laugh. She looked utterly confused. "You shagged Malfoy?"

"Twice," Hermione mumbled.

After a short moment Ginny's expression completely changed. Her eyes lit up and a smile replaced her grimace.

"How was he?" she asked curiously.

Hermione blushed again as images from earlier that night flashed briefly in her mind. "Amazing."

"I have to hear how this happened," Ginny said. "Did he just tell you he wanted to shag you?"

Hermione started from the beginning, explaining how Draco had first cornered her in the abandoned corridor and how she kissed him to get away. She admitted to snogging him outside of Hogsmeade and to dancing with him at the Halloween ball and to sneaking off to the Room of Requirement with him afterward.

"I can't believe it," Ginny whispered after Hermione had finished. "You and Malfoy are the most unlikely couple I can imagine... Honestly, I would have guessed Snape before him."

"I know," Hermione sighed. "But we aren't exactly a couple."

"What are you going to do?" Ginny asked. "Just keep snogging him in private and occasionally sneaking off for a nice shag?"

Hermione shook her head. "I'm not sure there's anything we _can_ do. We could never be seen together; People wouldn't understand."

"Well I am certainly a person and I understand," Ginny said flatly.

Hermione forced a smile. "Thanks, Gin."

"Now let's go get you some Bruise Removal paste before anyone else sees that."

...x...x...x...

It appeared that Ginny had been true to her word because two weeks had passed and neither Harry nor Ron had confronted her about her 'thing' with Draco. She hated to call it a relationship, because it was much less than that; It wasn't even really a friendship, even though Draco had stopped making rude comments to her in class. In fact, it had been since their last venture in the Room of Requirement that he had talked to her at all.

Hermione took her seat in Potions and stared blankly ahead. She was extremely aware of a pair of stormy gray eyes gazing at her across the aisle, but she would not give him the satisfaction of meeting them. If he couldn't buck up the courage to speak to her in a public setting, she wouldn't be bothered to look at him. At least, that is what she tried to make herself believe.

"Granger!" Draco hissed, almost inaudibly. "Granger!"

Hermione cut her eyes at him and saw him gesture downward. Skeptically, Hermione glanced down and saw a neatly folded note lying just beside her textbook. She blushed and quickly hid the folded parchment beneath her book, pretending that she had not seen it.

"Granger!" he hissed again.

With a huff, Hermione chanced a glance across the aisle in time to see Draco mouth, 'Read it!'

She looked nervously to her right where Harry and Ron were playing an incredibly immature game to see who could flick the other the hardest; They both had red marks across the backs of their hands and seemed to be quite entertained. She slid her hand beneath her textbook nervously and withdrew the note, unfolding it in her lap.

"Ooooo!" she heard Pansy Parkinson squeal beside her and snatch the parchment out of her hands. "Granger's got a note!"

"Give that back!" Hermione barked, leaping from her seat. Her face was flushed and her heart pounding fast; She glanced nervously at Draco, hoping that he would come to her aid, but he simply watched with a smirk on his face.

"Is it a love note?" Pansy squealed as she took off up the aisle. "I bet it's from _Scarhead_."

Hermione stormed after her, making wide swipes to retrieve the page from Pansy's grasp.

"It's nothing," Hermione said. "Just some Potions notes."

"Then you won't have a problem if I read them to the class?" Pansy cackled. "They could use some of your notes."

The entire class had turned to watch the two girls fight over the note, and they all seemed to be holding their breath. The Gryffindors were silently hoping that Hermione would hex Pansy into the next week, but several others were interested in what the note might say. Hermione made a final swipe at the parchment, which Pansy held clear out of her reach, before huffing and narrowing her eyes.

"Go ahead, read it. Just don't hurt yourself with the big words."

Pansy smiled triumphantly, unfolding the parchment and clearing her throat; She was preparing to announce to the impatient class what she had discovered, but as she opened her mouth to speak, she faltered. Her eyes scanned the page curiously and Hermione could only pray that there was nothing too revealing in there.

Finally, after a long moment, Pansy asked, "Nine hundred thirty? What's so special about 930?"

"Besides the fact that you probably never learned to count that high, it's a restricted section in the library where I've been doing research," Hermione improvised and jerked the page away from her.

Hermione hurried back to her seat as Professor Slughorn entered the classroom and glanced down at the now crumpled parchment in her hand. _930?_ she thought with a furrowed brow. But after a split second she understood: It wasn't 930, but 9:30. Draco wanted to meet in the Room of Requirement tonight.

She looked over the aisle as Professor Slughorn was giving instructions and saw Draco smile. She shook her head at him, slammed the note inside her textbook, and faced forward again.

"We will be working in pairs today and as an extra treat, I'm going to let you choose your own partners," said Professor Slughorn with a smile, as though he had done the class a huge favor. "You'll find everything you need in the supply closet at the back of the class."

Hermione leaped to her feet before anyone else and hurried to the back of the room. She had not even given thought to who her partner would be since Ron and Harry would obviously work together, when Draco cornered her in the back of the room.

"Good news, Granger," he smirked. "Looks like you can be my partner today."

Hermione almost dropped the vials in her hand. "Wh-what? Be _your_ partner?"

"That's what I said."

"And what makes you think I _want_ to be your partner?" she asked snappily.

Draco leaned closer to her, pretending to grab something over her shoulder, and whispered in her ear. "I know you do." His warm breath rolled over the skin of her exposed neck and sent chills down her spine.

"Besides," he said, straightening again. "You're the best in the class besides Potter, and I'd as soon boil my head in a cauldron as be his partner. What do you say?"

Hermione thought for a long moment as she stared up at Draco. "Alright, fine. But I'm not doing all the work."

They carried the needed supplies back to their desk and received several curiously looks from their classmates. Ron's mouth fell open unattractively as he saw Hermione take a seat next to Draco.

"Oi! What do you think you're doing?" he whispered across the aisle.

"Everyone else had a partner," Hermione lied before turning to her work; She didn't think she could face Harry or Ron at the moment, but she could deal with them later: They would surely have some choice words about the arrangement.

Draco was not looking at her, and she couldn't blame him. Everyone was still staring.

"What do we do first?" he asked as he leaned back in his chair.

"We read the directions," Hermione answered impatiently as she scoured over the pages in her book.

"Cool, let me know when you've done that."

Hermione glowered at him. "Are you seriously not going to do any of the work?"

"Of course I am," he answered, looking offended. "Looking as good as I do takes a lot of effort, but I'll stir or something if you want me to."

She rolled her eyes irritably and continued to read through the instructions, but Draco was making it very hard to concentrate.

"So I take it the answer is yes?"

She began to chop up a rubbery, green plant and added it to their boiling cauldron before answering. The water in the cauldron changed to a light green as a puff of smoke was expelled.

"The answer to what?"

"The note, of course."

"I'd rather not talk about that now," she whispered as she moved on to the second step.

"Why not? No one is listening," he assured her.

"Because I'd rather talk somewhere more private."

"Let's go to the loo," he suggested. "We'll be back in time to finish the potion."

"Together? Draco, people aren't stupid."

He huffed. "Just say you'll show up."

"No."

"Why not?" he gaped.

"Because I don't want to."

"Yes, you do."

"Well, yes I do but..."

"..but what?"

Hermione shook her head. "Can't this wait until after class? Cut up that boomslang skin."

Draco begrudgingly picked up his knife and started to cut. "It could, but I want to know now."

She huffed. "Because I'm tired of just being some secret shag, Draco."

He was so shocked by her reply that he accidentally cut himself. He cursed under his breath and brought his injured finger to his mouth, sucking on it tenderly.

"What are you saying?"

Hermione added another ingredient to the potion before inching her way closer to Draco's side and whispering, "I meant what I said. I'm tired of being some secret shag. If you want any more of my attention, you're going to have to do something for me."

"You're giving me an ultimatum? Do this or I won't shag you... is that it?"

"Yes."

Draco was silent for a long moment. "What exactly do I have to do?"

She blushed; Draco must have really wanted to get in her knickers if he was willing to consider her offer. "Well, would it hurt for us to hang out together outside the Room of Requirement?"

"We're hanging out together now."

"You know what I mean. We could study together or go to Hogsmeade together or..."

Draco looked as though she had just slapped him. His mouth was open slightly, his eyes wide. "You mean _alone_? Like _friends_?

"Something along those lines, yes."

"Granger, you know I can't do that," he shook his head. "I can't be seen with a mu- with you."

Hermione's heart fell but she tried to keep her expression blank. She added yet another ingredient to the potion and began to stir the mixture two dozen times.

"Then I can't meet you in the Room of Requirement anymore."

They finished their potion in silence. Hermione was on the verge of tears, but she blamed it on the thick purple fumes that their concoction was emitting. It seemed to appease Ron, who was ready to run across the aisle and pummel Draco. At the end of the lesson, Professor Slughorn made his usual rounds to check everyone's work.

"I think you added one too many newt eyes, Ms. Brown."

"Excellent as usual Mr. Potter," he sang happily. "I hope you paid attention, Mr. Weasley." "Wonderful work Ms. Granger and Mr. Malfoy. You seem to be natural partners."

After cleaning up and emptying out their cauldron, Hermione gathered her things and was about to head back to her seat beside Harry when Draco grabbed hold of her sleeve. She turned and met his gaze, though he did not slacken his grip on her robes immediately.

"Meet me in the library before dinner," he said softly. "I have some homework to catch up on."

Hermione beamed at him and tried to fight the smile that was making its way across her face. Draco was willing to be seen with her, albeit in the library, and she would take it. It was a start, and if they were seen together in the library enough times perhaps she could convince him to meet up in Hogsmeade.

"Deal," she said and she rushed to Harry and Ron's side as the bell rang.

**I'm not a fan of author's notes, but I wanted to apologize for my prolonged absence. I hope this update makes up for the wait. **


	15. Ron's Temper

Hermione mumbled something to Harry and Ron about having work to do in the library before all but sprinting down the corridor. She had not even given them a chance to say what they thought about her working with Malfoy in class, but she knew they would have something to say about it at dinner. Hermione simply hoped that Ron didn't make a scene like the last time and make her cry in front of everyone.

Hidden at the back of the library, just before the Restricted Section, there was a small table with three chairs where Hermione liked to hide herself and work alone. Students rarely ventured this far into the library because most of the reference books and useful information were kept in easy to locate places at the front. This was the perfect place for her and Draco to meet without having to worry about too many curious looks; If they were lucky, no one at all would pass by. Plopping down in the corner, Hermione withdrew her History of Magic book and opened it to a random page so that she appeared to be working, when in reality she was checking the aisle every few seconds to see if Draco had arrived. Fifteen minutes passed before his figure slid into view and Hermione fought a smile.

"I walked the aisles twice before coming back here," he grumbled. "I thought you'd stood me up."

"Why would I stand you up if this was my idea in the first place?"

He smirked halfheartedly and dropped his bag on the floor beside the table. "I just hope no one sees us, but I don't think anyone but you comes to the library at this hour; Everyone else will be getting ready for dinner."

Hermione's cheeks flushed. "If anyone sees us together, you can just say I'm tutoring you. It's not as big a deal as your make it out to be."

Draco sighed. "Granger, you know I can't be seen with you."

"I know," she whispered, though it was hardly audible. _But I'm trying not to remember._

A long moment of silence passed between the two of them.

"What homework did you need to work on?"

"Honestly, all of it," he smiled. "But I don't think I'll be getting any of it done today."

She looked up at him curiously. "Why do you say that?"

Draco pulled out his wand and pointed at the aisle. "Muffliato," he said before stowing his wand and answering Hermione. "Because you make it hard for me to concentrate."

"So what? We're just going to sit here and..."

Draco shrugged. "I thought you wanted to hang out. So, here I am."

"And you're doing all this just so I'll meet you in the Room of Requirement," Hermione smirked. "It's amazing what lengths a man will go to..."

"Yes and no," he argued. "Of course I want to meet you tonight, but it's not just that."

"Then what is it?"

"I mean, I want to talk to you. I want to spend time with you..."

"But you can't," Hermione finished. "I know, you've said that."

Draco groaned. "Do you not realize what I'm risking? Just by being here with you? If anyone were to see... if word were to get back to my father..."

Hermione said nothing, but glared down at the text book in front of her. Draco could tell that she was upset, even if what he was telling her was true, but he hated to see her this way. He had never once cared about hurting a girl's feelings, but something had changed in him that made it nearly unbearable for Draco to see her this way. After a nervous glance down the aisle, Draco swept Hermione's hair away from her face.

"If you just came here to tell me how much you don't want to be seen with me, I get the message." Her voice sounded hurt. "You can go now."

"I just hope you understand how bad this can potentially be for me," Draco whispered.

"Because I'm a Mudblood."

Draco winced. "Don't say that."

Hermione looked up eagerly and met Draco's gaze. "But it's what I am. And it's how your family sees me, and all your Pureblood friends."

"Yes, but it's not how I see you," Draco shook his head.

"Do you mean that?" Hermione asked breathlessly.

He nodded. "Before, yes. But no, not anymore. Now all I see is a brilliant, beautiful witch."

Unable to contain herself, Hermione suddenly launched herself forward and met Draco's lips with hers; He almost fell backwards off his chair before he caught his balance. He held on to Hermione for a moment, his lips dancing against hers, before she pulled herself away.

"I'm sorry," she giggled, apparently surprised at her own daring. "It's just... that's the most incredible thing you could have ever said."

Draco blushed slightly. "Yea, well, even I have moments of brilliance, Granger."

They heard a noise on the other side of the bookshelf and Draco dashed to the end of the aisle to see if anyone was eavesdropping, but it was just the old crane of a librarian returning a book. Draco waiting until she headed back to her desk at the front before he took his seat by Hermione again.

"So, where do your friends think you are?" Hermione asked.

"Blaise knows I'm in the library; He thinks I came to talk to you," Draco explained. "But no one else knows."

Hermione's eyes bulged. "Blaise _knows_?"

"He suspects more than he knows," Draco laughed. "He knows that we danced on Halloween and that I disappeared afterward. He also knows that I went to talk to you after your fight with Weasel the other day. In fact, he _made_ me go talk to you."

"And he didn't saying anything?"

He shook his head. "Not Blaise. My business is my business; He doesn't judge."

Before she could help herself, Hermione spat, "Ginny's the same way."

"The Weaselette knows?" Draco asked, fear growing in his eyes.

"Don't call her that," she snapped. "The last time I got back to the common room late I had a huge hickey on my neck. How was I supposed to explain that?"

Draco's gaze softened. "I'm sorry. I should have been more careful."

Hermione shrugged. "Luckily Ginny intercepted me when I got back before anyone else saw and she gave me some Bruise Removal Paste. But I had to tell her."

"Wait. You told her it was _me_?"

She nodded. "But she swore she wouldn't tell anyone. And, honestly, she's okay with it. She thinks it's a little weird, all things considered, but she understands."

"Let's just hope your friend keeps her word," he groaned. "We can't risk anyone else finding out."

"Humor me for a minute," Hermione said. "What _if_ everyone was okay with it? What _if_ there were just a handful of people who cared, but everyone else accepted it? Then would you be willing to be seen with me?"

To her surprise, Draco hardly had to think about his answer. "If everyone was okay with it, of course it wouldn't bother me."

After nervously checking behind him and seeing that the aisle was clear, Draco leaned forward and softly kissed Hermione's lips. She pulled herself closer to him so that their chairs were almost touching before he released her with a smile.

"Are you staying over Christmas break?" he asked.

"I had planned on going home. Why?"

"Because it'll be a lot easier for us to spend time together when there aren't many students left, don't you think?"

Hermione's eyes suddenly brightened and she dropped her voice. "Plus, with so few students left, we may not even have to sneak into the Room of Requirement."

Draco's jaw dropped and he stared at Hermione in disbelief. Had she really just implied what he thought she had?

"We'd better get going," Hermione said, "We're going to be late, and I'm hungry."

...x...x...x...

"SO?" Ron spat as he shoved his plate aside. "Are you going to tell us what the bloody hell that was about in Potions today?"

"Enough, Ron," Harry said in a warningly low voice. "Drop it."

"First she thinks Malfoy is the hottest thing at Hogwarts, and then she picks him to be her partner. You try and tell me there's not something going on."

"I didn't pick him," Hermione answered, trying to keep her voice level. "He picked me."

This only seemed to infuriate Ron more. "What's he playing at then? He hates you for five years and then all of a sudden he thinks your pretty and wants to make Potions with you; No, I'd say he's got a lot more than Potions on his mind."

"And what exactly do you think he's got on his mind, Ronald?" Hermione asked, her voice still calm.

Ron snickered. "To be the brightest witch of our age, Hermione, you sure are pretty dim when it comes to boys. He's trying to get in your trousers!"

"Ron, come on," Harry urged. "You're making a scene."

"The more people who know that Malfoy is a low-life who's just trying to take advantage of our Hermione, the better," he snarled.

"Excuse me!" Hermione said, raising her voice for the first time. "But since when am I _anybody's _Hermione. Just because we are friends does not mean you _own_ me Ronald!"

Ron's face flushed red, clashing against his orange hair, but he continued. "All he's trying to do is make a name for himself. He'll be bored with you next week and he'll move onto the next innocent girl. He did the same with Parkinson."

Hermione suddenly dropped her fork and it clattered against her plate. "What do you mean he did the same with Parkinson?"

"You haven't heard?" Ron asked. "Last year he led her on for a bit until he shagged her in the girls' lavatory and then he didn't want anything to do with her. Now I guess he's decided to try the same with you, and I'm not going to let that happen."

"That's enough, Ron," Harry said, finding his voice. "People are starting to stare."

Hermione felt like she had swallowed something bitter and her insides were cramping up. She felt light headed and uneasy. "You're making that up."

Ron shook his head defiantly. "Ask Parkinson if you don't believe me. She was bragging about it in the corridor last year and then Malfoy got mad that she'd told everyone, so he broke it off with her."

Hermione couldn't breathe. She couldn't think. Could everything Draco have told her been a lie? She looked around shakily for Ginny, who was sitting several feet down the table with her friends today, but she was lost in a giddy conversation and did not even look over. Finally, she looked up at the Slytherin table and saw Blaise and Draco watching her curiously. They were talking, but she could tell that both of them were looking her way, probably wondering what the hell was going on. Her eyes had begun to sting, not only because of Ron's horrible attitude toward her, but also the implications against Draco.

"I'll see you back in the common room," Hermione choked before pushing her plate away and hurrying out of the hall.

"Now you've done it, you prat!" she heard Harry bark at Ron before she was out of earshot.

No sooner had she stepped into the corridor outside, the tears fell from her eyes and she covered her mouth with her hand. She hurried up several flights of stairs and had almost made it to the Gryffindor common room when her knees gave way from under her and she slumped to the ground; There she sobbed quietly into the fabric of her robes.

...x...x...x...

"It looks like Weasley is yelling at her again," Blaise whispered. "I wonder what for?"

"Probably about us partnering in Potions," Draco said glumly. "I knew it was a stupid idea."

"Maybe not the smartest, but it got you good marks."

The two continued to watch the scene between Ron and Hermione unfold at the Gryffindor table, Draco growing angrier by the second.

"I'd still like to go over there and knock Weasel's teeth in," he growled.

"Not in the middle of the Great Hall, Drake," Blaise shook his head. "Maybe we can catch him in Hogsmeade or something; After all, I'd rather get detention than be expelled."

"I can almost hear what he's saying," Draco whispered, straining his hearing to its limit and picking up scattered words of Ron's. If a few more people in the hall would stop talking, he'd be able to hear the whole thing, considering how loud Ron was being.

"Five years...low-life...your trousers...Parkinson..."

"Did he just say Parkinson?" Blaise interrupted.

"You heard that too? I guess he wants to get in Parkinson's trousers."

They both laughed.

"Uh oh," Blaise said suddenly.

"What is it?"

"Look at her face; She looks really upset. Yep, there she goes," Blaise said as Hermione stood and stormed away from the Gryffindor table.

"If the Weasel wanker follows her, I'm going," Draco warned.

"Why don't you go anyway?"

Draco shook his head. "I'm sure he or Scarhead would notice if I headed out a few seconds after she did; They'd assume I was going to follow her and come after me."

"Ah. I'll go with you; But if they follow you it gives you the chance to bash Weasel's skull in like you want."

Draco considered this and smirked. "Thanks, mate. But let's wait a few and see what happens."

Blaise shrugged. "Your call."

...x...x...x...

"Hermione?" a soft voice called down the corridor.

Immediately, Hermione knew the voice did not belong to Draco, but she did not look up.

"'Mione," the voice cooed, much closer this time. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Hermione sniffed, her voice muffled through her robes.

"Come on, up you get," Ginny said as she pulled Hermione to her feet. "The Gryffindors will be on their way in a few and we don't want them to find us here. Let's go to the loo."

Hermione agreed, only because she was too upset to disagree. She followed Ginny into the lavatory and took a seat on a stretch of marble counter that ran along the wall near the bathtub. Ginny retrieved a hand towel from the linen closet, which the house elves kept stocked with fresh towels, and wet it with cold water; She returned to Hermione's side and offered it to her.

"Thanks," Hermione said, smiling weakly. She wiped the tears from her face and let the cool fabric soothe the tender skin around her eyes.

"I didn't realize you had left until Harry told me," Ginny admitted. "He said that Ron was being a git and made you cry again."

"He told me that Draco was just trying to get in my pants," she explained. "That's why he wanted to be my partner in Potions."

"You were partners?" Ginny asked, this being the first she had heard of it.

"He asked and since Harry and Ron were going to be partners I said yes. Looking back, I guess it was a stupid idea, especially considering what happened with the Veritaserum."

Ginny smiled sympathetically. "But it was for a class assignment. He can't stay mad over that."

"Then he went on about how Draco shagged Parkinson in the lavatory last year and how Draco was planning to do the same with me," Hermione said.

"Ron's just jealous," Ginny said, shaking her head. "And a git. He'll say anything to make you leave Draco alone, not only because he hates him, but he wants you to pay attention to him. He wants you to hate Draco as much as he does, like you have for the last five years, and he can't stand it that your opinion is changing."

"Do you really think so?" Hermione sniffled.

Ginny smiled. "When have I ever been wrong?"

"I guess you're right. But how can he be so mean about it?"

"It's a Weasley curse; We're known for our red hair and tempers. At least Mum, Ron, and I are."

Hermione forced a smile.

"Are you ready to go back to the common room?"

She shook her head. "I don't want to see Ron. He'll probably just start yelling again."

Ginny's eyes narrowed and she furrowed her brow. "If Ron says one word to you in the common room, I'll make him pay for it. I didn't do it in the Great Hall because I was in a hurry to find you, but I'll make one of Mum's howlers look tame."

"Then let's go," Hermione said halfheartedly. She would have rather remained in the lavatory until it was time to meet Draco in the Room of Requirement, but she was glad for Ginny's company.

Most of Gryffindor had already returned from the Great Hall by the time Ginny and Hermione slid through the portrait hole. Ron and Harry were sitting on the sofa, Ron's arms over his chest like a pouting child. As soon as the girls walked into the common room, Ron leaped from his place on the couch and marched over to them. Hermione sighed deeply, knowing that she was going to hear more about Draco than she ever cared to hear, but Ginny stepped in front of her.

"Can I help you?" Ginny asked sternly.

"No. I want to talk to Hermione," he growled. "Now, move."

"Well, Hermione doesn't want to talk to you; So, go sit down."

They stared at each other for a long moment.

"You don't understand, Ginny. Draco's only using Hermione and I'm not going to stand by and watch him ruin her reputation."

"She understands your opinion on the issue, but wishes that you would MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS."

"LOOK, I'm going to count to three, and if you're not out of the way..."

"Well, I'M GOING TO COUNT TO TWO, RONALD WEASLEY," Ginny yelled in his face. It didn't matter that Ron was several heads taller than Ginny; At the moment, they seemed about the same height. "AND THEN I'M GOING TO HEX YOU."

"You wouldn't do it," Ron retorted.

"ONE!" Ginny counted as she reached for her wand.

"I'm your brother!" he reminded her.

"TWO!" she growled as she whipped out her wand and pointed it at Ron's chest.

"I'd watch out Ron!" Seamus called. "She's wicked with hexes."

"Oi! Whose side are you on? Stay out of it would ya?"

"I'm done counting, Ron. Go sit back down or I will hex you. And if Mum asks why I did it, I'll tell her that you were being a BIG STINKING PRAT."

Slowly, but with no less anger in his eyes, Ron stepped aside.

"You leave Hermione alone about this damned whole thing. Don't say anything to her, don't ask her about anything. Believe it or not she's a big girl and doesn't need you HARPING DOWN HER NECK ABOUT EVERY DETAIL OF HER LIFE. GOT IT?"

Ron said nothing but returned to his seat on the sofa and crossed his arms across his chest once more.

"What are the rest of you looking at?" Ginny snapped, seeing that she was getting curious looks from everyone in the common room. "Come on, Hermione. Let's go to my room."


	16. The Elixir of Euphoria

"That was brilliant. Thank you."

Ginny shrugged. "He deserved it. Besides, you would have done the same for me. So, when are you supposed to see Draco again?"

"I'm supposed to meet him tonight in the Room of Requirement."

"At least he'll be able to take your mind off Ron," Ginny winked.

Hermione blushed. "Just seeing him will make me feel better."

"Aw! Isn't being in love awesome," Ginny said. "It's the same way with Harry - whenever I have a bad day or I'm upset, seeing him always makes me feel better!"

"I-in love? Ginny, I'm not in love with Draco," Hermione stuttered and shook her head. "I just... I want to see him... after all this fighting. He'll know what to say."

Ginny continued to smile. "You can't lie to me, Hermione. How many times do I have to tell you that?"

"Ginny, I'm not! I haven't even thought about whether I _like_ him or not," she said defensively. "There's no way I could be in love with him."

But Ginny was not convinced. "You don't always realize when you're in love with someone; Sometimes it just hits you like a bludger. It's not about deciding whether you like him or don't like him, whether you love him or don't love him; It's something that just happens."

Hermione shook her head. "You don't understand."

"Don't I?" Ginny asked, raising an eyebrow. "You feel better when you see him, right?"

"Yes."

"And you spend a lot of your time thinking about him?"

"Well, if by a lot you mean... yea, I do."

"When you're in the same room but you can't talk to him, all you want to do is look at him?"

"Erm... yes."

"Every time you touch him, or even maybe when he looks at you, you get butterflies?"

"Yes."

"When you finally get alone with him you don't ever want it to end? Like you could spend forever with him?"

Hermione nodded.

"And the thought of him being with someone else nearly kills you?"

Hermione nodded again.

"I hate to break it to you," Ginny said definitively, "but it sure sounds like you're in love to me."

...x...x...x...

_In love_, Hermione thought as she rummaged through the trunk at the foot of her bed. _How can I be in love with Draco?_

It was the only thing on Hermione's mind after she left Ginny's bedchamber and headed back to her own. Could she possibly be in love with Draco? After all, they had hardly spent enough time together for her to develop feelings for him, and yet, he was the only boy who ever crossed her mind and everything Ginny had said was true. But if she was in love with Draco, where did he stand? Did he have feelings for her or was he just attached to her because she had taken his virginity?

Hermione found was she was looking for, a fat vial of potion, and stuffed it into her pocket. She then closed the lid of the trunk carefully and made her way down to the common room. There were a couple of stragglers still lounging about, avoiding sleep, but Hermione paid them no attention as she headed to the portrait hole and stepped out into the dark corridor.

She found the door to the Room of Requirement already in place and her heartbeat sped up. She knew that just on the other side of the door was Draco, and as soon as she saw him, all her troubles from the day would seem trivial. Her fight with Ron wouldn't matter and spending nearly an hour in the corridor crying her eyes out would be forgotten. She fought a smile as she hurried toward the door but stopped short when her fingers landed on the door handle.

_Ginny was right_, she thought. _If I feel this way, I must be in love with him_.

Hermione shoved the door open, feeling as though her heart were about to burst, and found herself standing in an unfamiliar room. The walls were all draped with thick, velvet fabric tied with golden tassels and a plush black carpet covered the floor. The four poster bed was now pushed to the corner of the room while two large sofas occupied the middle in front of the fireplace. Draco was sitting on one of the sofas, his arms draped across the back, and his back was turned to her.

At the sound of the door closing, Draco jolted and turned to face her; He stood and made his way around the couch, rushing to meet her halfway and was surprised when Hermione crashed into him and wrapped her arms around him.

"Are you okay?" he asked worriedly, rubbing a hand tentatively over her hair.

"I am now," she breathed, not wanting him to let her go. She felt a sudden surge of emotions and her eyes stung painfully.

"No you're not," he said. He gently nudged her away from him so that he could look her at her face. "What's wrong? Did that Weasel give you a hard time? Why are you crying?"

"I'm just..." she started, but her words were lost. She didn't want to talk, she just wanted Draco to hold her for a while.

Draco led her over to the couch and laid down so that she could crawl up against him. She rested her head on his chest and he ran his fingers absentmindedly through her hair, eager to hear why she was so upset. He didn't push her for answers, but waited, thankful that she was not a loud crier. She only sobbed for a few minutes and then fell still; For a moment, Draco thought that she had fallen asleep until he heard her voice.

"Why didn't you tell me about Parkinson?" she asked.

Of all the things Draco had expected her to say, that had certainly not been one of them. "What about her?"

"Did you two have a fling last year?"

"I wouldn't call it a fling," he admitted. "But we were close for a week or two, yea."

Hermione bit her lip, afraid to go on. "I'm assuming that wasn't strictly platonic."

"Well, erm, no. We snogged a bit and she.. well, it's not important."

"It's important to me," Hermione said, looking up to meet his gaze. "You lied to me."

"No I didn't."

"You told me you'd never been with anyone," she fought to keep her voice from cracking. "But you shagged Parkinson in the girls' lavatory."

Draco rolled his eyes. "Not this again."

"So it's true?"

"No," he growled. "It's not. Yes, we were in the girls' lavatory. Yes, we did some things. But I did not shag her. Ever. She started that lie and that was when I broke it off with her."

"Can I ask what you did?" she pressed.

"Only if you really want to know," he said, massaging his temples. "We sneaked in there to snog and there was no one in there, so Parkinson wanted to get in my pants. She sucked my dick in one of the stalls, and then told everyone I'd shagged her. Who told you that story anyway?"

"Ron."

Draco's eyes darkened. "What else did he tell you?"

"That you were going to do the same to me that you did to Parkinson; You would lead me on for a few weeks, shag me, and then move on to the next girl."

Draco suddenly looked murderous. In all the time Hermione had known him, she could remember very few times that she had seen him this angry; One of those times was in the Great Hall after she had kissed him for the first time.

"For Weasel's information, I didn't lead Parkinson on," he argued. "I was legitimate in my interest until I found out how much of a big mouth she had. Also, we've been at this for more than a few weeks, so it's safe to say he's wrong again."

Hermione forced a smile. "Well, he doesn't know that. All he knows is that you think I'm pretty and you wanted to be my Potions partner."

Sensing that Hermione was feeling better, Draco pulled her on top of him and kissed her lips. He would pound Weasel to a pulp later, but right now was his time to enjoy with Hermione and he was not going to let anything ruin it.

There were two things that he immediately learned from having Hermione on top of him: One, that he loved it and couldn't wait to have her naked in the same position. Two, there was something heavy in her pocket that was hurting his leg. When they parted he asked her about it.

"I'd almost forgotten!" she said, and withdrew the vial from her pocket. "It's a present."

"A present? For me?"

"Well, for us. It's a potion."

Draco stared at it for a moment. "Is that the Elixir of Euphoria?"

She nodded devilishly. "Want some?"

"Only if you go first. You could be trying to poison me for all I know," he smirked.

With a smile, Hermione unstoppered the vial and took a swig of the potion: it tasted like liquid honey. She then passed the vial to Draco, who hesitantly took a swig and replaced the stopper. For a moment, nothing happened.

Then Hermione giggled. "I think it's working. I suddenly feel so light."

Draco laughed. "Wow. I feel it too. I'm so... happy."

"Does it look brighter in here to you?" Hermione asked, squinting.

"I think so. I think it's getting hotter."

"Take off your shirt," Hermione broke into a fit of giggles.

"Why don't you take it off for me?" And he too started to laugh. They were laughing so hard that they struggled for nearly a minute to get his shirt off.

Hermione immediately decided that the Elixir of Euphoria was an incredible potion. The feeling it brought on was one of pure pleasure, and happiness, and giddiness. Whenever she needed a pick-me-up, this was certainly the potion to look to.

"Do you steal all the potions from class?" Draco smiled.

"Only the successful ones. I have nearly all the ones Harry has made this year."

"I'm pretty sure that's against the rules," he nodded and then dropped his voice to a whisper. "But I won't tell."

They both burst into laughter and Hermione leaned over to kiss him. Her fingers wound their way into his hair and he moaned softly.

"Snogging is so much better," Draco gasped as he broke away from her. "I mean, before it was great, but now..."

"I know what you mean," Hermione smiled as she climbed on top of him again and continued to kiss him. She bit at his neck, the way he always did to her, and kissed across his chest. A goofy smile made its way across his face as Hermione continued to kiss and lick at his porcelain skin, making it all the way to his trousers.

"Don't stop," Draco whispered dreamily.

Hermione giggled. "What do you want me to do?"

He smiled again. "Whatever you want."

She unbuttoned his trousers and pulled them off, laughing hysterically when they got caught on his feet. She then crawled back up his body and kissed his lips.

"You want to hear something funny?" Hermione asked.

Draco laughed, even before she had said anything. "Sure, tell me."

"Ginny thinks I'm in love with you. Can you believe that?"

"She said that?"

Hermione nodded. "After she told off Ron for being a prat."

"Good for her," Draco smiled. "I owe her one."

"I told you, it doesn't bother her," she assured him.

"Well, what did you tell her?"

"What do you mean?"

"She thinks you're in love with me," Draco repeated. "What did you tell her?"

"I don't know," Hermione laughed. "I didn't know what to tell her."

"Well _are_ you?"

"Am I what?"

"In love with me?"

Hermione met Draco's stormy gray eyes with her own and watched them for a moment. As she stared into his eyes she felt nothing but pure elation, and she wasn't sure if it was the Elixir or if she always felt that way when she looked at him. He smiled at her and kissed her forehead and Hermione's stomach tingled with butterflies.

"I think I am," Hermione giggled and covered her mouth with her hand.

In a swift motion, Draco flipped Hermione onto the couch so that he was on top of her and kissed her lips. He let his weight crash down on her so that she could feel every bit of his skin against her and he kissed her more passionately than he had ever done before. He felt the same happiness and excitement he always felt when he was near her, but it seemed to be magnified exponentially. All he wanted to do was kiss this girl, and love her, and have her entire body for himself.

"Draco," she giggled when he let her have air again.

He smiled at the sound of his name on her lips and helped her out of her shirt and trousers during which she fell into another fit of giggles.

**WARNING: ADULT CONTENT! If you're not into that, skip the rest of this chapter.**

"Stop! It tickles!" she screamed as he tried to pull the pants off her feet.

"If you'd hold still, it wouldn't tickle!"

"I can't hold still because it tickles!"

When Hermione was finally in nothing but her bra and knickers, Draco kissed a trail from her neck to her navel and back. He laid beside her, enjoying the feel of her skin on his and kissing her softly.

"You're poking me," she whispered in between kisses.

He laughed. "Oh, sorry."

"Don't apologize," she giggled. "If you want attention just ask."

Draco almost jumped off the couch when Hermione plunged her hand into his boxers and grabbed hold of his shaft. The sudden feel of her skin against his throbbing penis sent him into a wave of pleasure and as she gently stroked it he moaned into her hair.

"Gods, Hermione, don't stop," he whispered. However, she did the exact opposite and he looked at her curiously. "What's wrong?"

"You said my name," she said softly.

"Should I not do that?" he asked worriedly.

He face broke into a smile. "No, Draco, you said my name. Not Granger. Not muggleborn. You called me Hermione."

The corner of his mouth curled upward. "I guess I did."

"I have to feed you Elixir more often," she laughed and she began to stroke him once more. Draco closed his eyes and began to rock with the motion of her hand.

"You can do anything you want to me," Draco whispered.

"Anything?" Hermione teased.

He nodded and Hermione took that as an invitation to slide herself down his body. She pulled away his boxers with her free hand, still stroking him softly, and placed her mouth around his head. He grabbed on to one of the sofa cushions and moaned as Hermione slowly took him into her mouth and pulled him out again.

"Her..mione," he moaned softly and found her head with one of his hands. He let her determine the speed but wrapped his hand in her hair as though to brace himself. Hermione took him out of her mouth and smiled before licking his shaft from the base to its salty tip.

"Sit up," she whispered as she dropped off into the floor.

Draco, who seemed to be in a daze, obeyed after a moment. "Why did you want me to..."

Before he could finish his question Hermione had set to work again, sucking him and stroking him in sync until he was shuttering from withholding his climax.

"Stop, stop, Hermione," he begged, but she would not stop. "Please, stop! Stop!"

Hermione reluctantly stopped, Draco less than a second from his climax and allowed him a few seconds to breathe before standing and kicking off her knickers. She climbed in his lap, feeling his hard dick between her legs and kissed him.

"Gods, you've got to stop torturing me," he smiled.

Hermione shook her head. "You like it and you know it."

"Is it my turn?" he asked, grinning widely.

Hermione shook her head again and Draco looked confused. She kissed him, softly biting his bottom lip, and took his penis into her hand. After gently directing it, she sat down on it slowly and Draco groaned as it disappeared inside her. She could only assume that she was doing things right as she watched Draco squeeze his eyes shut and heard him moan every time she humped him. He reached around and grabbed her bum, lifting her and lowering her slowly.

Hermione moaned and let herself fall forward against Draco as he began to do the work. He thrust his hips upward, each time burying himself completely before withdrawing again. Hermione could feel waves of heat pounding through her body as she neared her climax, like the first time Draco had made her finish. She squeezed her eyes closed as Draco quickened his pace, concentrating on the fire swelling in her middle. Draco found her mouth with his and kissing her deeply, thrusting his hips even faster now.

Hermione moaned in Draco's ear and he could tell that she was about to reach her peak. Her breathing had shortened and her hands were gripped tightly on the cushion behind him. He had been ready since she had crawled on top of him, but he had withheld finishing for her sake. In truth, if she had taken much longer, Draco would not have been able to hold out. He pushed off the floor with his feet, lifting himself completely off the couch, and continued to pump himself into her until she screamed.

"Oh my God, Draco!" she moaned and the orgasm tore through her body. At the sound of his name, Draco finally let go of the orgasm he had been holding back, and it crushed him like a tidal wave.

...x...x...x...

"Draco, that feels amazing!" Hermione said as Draco's hands slid down her back.

They had moved to the bed to lay down and rest, but Draco had taken it upon himself to give Hermione a back massage. He had started with his bare hands and just when he started to yearn for some lotion, the Room of Requirement produced a shelf with at least a dozen different scented creams. He chose one at random and returned to Hermione's naked form, kissing at her neck before continuing his massage.

"You must have had a lot of practice."

Draco chuckled. "Would you believe it if I said none?"

"No."

"Me either," he admitted. "But I've never given a massage to someone that's naked. So this is a first."

Hermione felt like clay in Draco's hands as he rubbed and massaged her. She could feel his hard penis against her bum, but she said nothing, for she was too enamored by her massage to care at the moment. It was only when Draco began to lower his hands that Hermione got the hint of an ulterior motive.

"Draco, that's my bum!" she squealed.

"I know, and it needs to relax too. Just relax and enjoy."

She felt his hands first caress her bum and then her thighs and then her inner thighs. Before she knew it she was longing for him to touch her more, and he seemed to know it too. Draco led his hand along her inner thigh until he felt hot flesh against his fingers. He slowly began to massage her folds, separating them so that he could find her clit. Hermione moaned as Draco kissed along her lower back and lead his second hand beneath her so it could caress her from the front as well.

Hermione moaned softly. "Oh, Draco, keep going."

"With pleasure," he said, and he kissed her back again.

With one hand he softly rubbed her clit and with the other he slowly pumped two fingers inside her. He lifted her slightly off the bed and moved his fingers faster, causing Hermione to grab hold of the edge of the bed. He kissed her bum, trailing his tongue over her smooth skin and raised her a bit higher to her knees while her chest was still against the bed. He straightened himself and withdrew his soaking hand from Hermione's core to wet his throbbing penis. He placed the tip of his dick against her hot, wet flesh and rubbed it slowly up and down. He could hear Hermione moaning, begging for more, and he carefully guided himself inside her, adjusting to the different position.

Draco thrust himself into her slowly and heard her moan every time he pushed forward.

"Are you okay?" he asked softly before continuing.

"I'm fine. Please keep going."

Draco smiled, encouraged by Hermione's response and thrust himself faster, grabbing onto her hips to steady himself. Hermione's moans excited him, and he couldn't help but pound her a little harder so that she moaned louder. Before he knew it he was on the brink of an orgasm and he shuttered with his release. He fell next to Hermione sweating, tired, and completely out of commission for the rest of the night.


	17. Blaise's Advice

"Are you sure you don't want to come home with us over Christmas break?" Ginny asked as she closed her trunk. "You know you're always welcome, and you don't have to worry about Ron."

Hermione shook her head. "It's alright Ginny, really."

Ginny smiled halfheartedly. "Could this have anything to do with a certain _someone_ staying over the break as well?"

"Possibly," she grinned.

"Then don't worry about it. I would stay too if the roles were reversed."

They headed down to breakfast together, spending the last minutes before Christmas break together. Hermione had agreed to accompany them to the Hogwarts Express when it set off for London. It felt strange not to be going home to see her family or to be going to the Burrow, and she hoped that it was not all in vain. She hoped that she would get to spend as much time with Draco as he had promised.

"Does Ron know you're staying?" Ginny asked in a hushed voice as they took their seats at the Gryffindor table.

Hermione shook her head. "Neither does Harry, unless you told him."

"No, I haven't. I guess they'll find out at the train station then." Ginny shrugged.

Hermione sat as far away from Ron as possible while still being able to talk to Harry and Ginny, and she did not so much as look his way the entire time. She did, however, look up and see Draco and Blaise at the Slytherin table; Blaise even nodded his head to acknowledge her but Draco did nothing. Hermione blushed, nodded her head slightly in return, and turned away.

"You know, if it doesn't work out with Draco, Blaise is kind of cute," Ginny whispered in her ear.

Hermione laughed. "If this doesn't work out, I'm never talking to another Slytherin in any way, shape, or form ever again."

On the carriage ride to the train, Ginny opted to sit by Hermione to save her from being any closer to Ron than she had to be. As they rolled slowly along the trail, Ginny made feeble attempts at conversation but the only person who would answer her was Harry, so she eventually gave up. They stopped a short distance from the train tracks, along with dozens of other carriages and headed to the platform.

"I guess I'll see you when you get back," Hermione said to Harry just before they boarded the train.

"You're not coming with us?" he asked, obviously shocked.

Hermione shook her head. "I'm staying here."

"Is it because of...?" Harry cut his eyes over at Ron who was standing several feet away.

"No," she answered. "I just wanted to stay. Be sure to tell Mrs. Weasley 'hello' for me."

Harry promised he would and he hugged her around the neck before boarding the train. Ron had already boarded and disappeared into a compartment, obviously expecting Hermione to follow along with the others. Ginny hugged Hermione and wished her luck before following Harry onto the train. Hermione waved goodbye to a few others, including Neville and Luna before turning and heading back to the castle on foot.

It was a long, cold walk, but Hermione's cheeks were burning. Her heart was racing in her chest as her thoughts shifted to Draco and the fact that soon she would see him. She could hardly believe her luck; It seemed like far fewer students had decided to stay at Hogwarts than normal. There were only a few Gryffindors staying, none of them in her year, and even fewer Slytherins. The possibilities suddenly seemed endless as far as what she and Draco could do together and where they could go without being seen. They could easily go to Hogsmeade now that there were so few people to worry about or Draco could quite possibly sneak up to the Gryffindor common room if he wanted and no one would ever know.

"Granger!" she heard a sharp whisper as she started up the stairs.

She turned quickly, her foot almost slipping off the step, and saw Draco smiling up at her, his hands in his pockets. He was wearing a long sleeve, emerald shirt with dark pants and his hair was wet as though he'd just showered.

"Back to using last names, are we?" she asked, her brow raised.

The corner of Draco's mouth lifted into a smirk. "_Hermione_, then. Where are you going?"

"The common room." Then, after a moment of silence she added, "Walk with me?"

He considered this a moment and then, without a word, Draco fell into step beside her and they climbed the stairs. His hands were still in his pockets, as though he were trying to keep them to himself.

"This is a little weird," he laughed uncomfortably. "Don't you think?"

She blushed. "A bit. But I could get used to it."

Draco smiled and as they rounded a corner, stepping into an empty corridor, he grabbed Hermione by the hand and pushed her gently against the wall. He ran his fingers slowly along her jawline, brushing them softly against the exposed skin of her neck.

"This seems vaguely familiar," he whispered as he brushed his lips against hers.

Hermione felt her center melt like butter and tingles rolled down her back. The feel of Draco's lips on hers, soft as it was, made her heart skip a beat.

"Vaguely," she agreed softly before he increased the pressure against her mouth.

Hermione sighed into his mouth as his tongue danced against hers, their lips moving in perfect sync. She wound her fingers into his hair and pulled him closer, his hands braced against the wall on either side of her head. After a long minute he pulled away and smiled.

"I thought I'd try that," he breathed, "since everyone's gone."

"You can try it more if you want," she assured him.

He shook his head slowly. "To be honest, I prefer privacy."

Disappointed that Draco didn't want to continue snogging, Hermione nodded and they headed off toward the Gryffindor common room once more. Draco kept at least six inches between them at all times, occasionally glancing over his shoulder to see if anyone was following them. He never saw anyone. They arrived at the portrait of the Fat Lady and Draco raised his brow as it swung open, revealing the entrance to the Gryffindor common room.

"Are you coming?" Hermione asked skeptically, tucking her hair behind her ear.

"I... I don't think... I mean, it's..." Draco stammered, backing slowly away from the entrance.

"I understand if you don't want to," she admitted. She tried to smile, but it was lost on her lips.

Draco's jaw hardened; He could see the disappointment in her eyes. With a deep breath, he stepped forward and followed her through the portrait hole, his heart hammering erratically in his chest. His first impression of the Gryffindor common room was that it wasn't as nice as the Slytherin's. It was stuffy, unlike the refreshing coolness of the dungeons, and the red and gold decorations were a bit of an eyesore. But as soon as he saw the smile on Hermione's face he forgot his discomfort.

"What do you think?" she asked, gesturing to their surroundings.

He scrunched up his nose. "It's nice."

She laughed. "You don't have to lie."

Hermione led the way to the couch in front of the fireplace where she took off her coat and had a seat. Draco joined her skeptically, after sweeping his eyes around the empty room once more, and pulled her against his chest. She molded to his body, fitting herself perfectly in the crook under his arm.

"Now _this_ is a little weird," she laughed.

"Not if you don't think about it too much."

She looked up and found her face only inches from his. He was watching her, his mouth curled into a smile, and he swept her hair away from her face.

_This is nice,_ she thought. She could definitely get used to it; In fact, she was wondering how they weren't going to spend every day of Christmas break curled up or snogging somewhere. If only they could do this all the time, without having to worry about anyone... If only Draco had been in Gryffindor, rather than Slytherin, or vice versa...

...x...x...x...

Draco spent the afternoon with Hermione in front of the fire before insisting on returning to the Slytherin common room. He didn't want to go, not really, but the more time he spent with her the harder it was to stay away. If he spent every day with her, it would be impossible for him to pretend that there was nothing between them once everyone returned from the holidays. He kissed her a final time, savoring the taste of her lips, before disappearing through the portrait hole and heading to the Slytherin common room.

Not to his surprise, Blaise was waiting for him.

"About time, mate. I thought you'd gotten lost."

"I went for a walk," Draco answered dryly.

Blaise laughed. "How was it?"

He shot him a daring look. "Fine."

"Mmm. I'm surprised to see you back so soon; I thought at the earliest I'd see you at dinner."

Draco scoffed. "That was the plan but... I don't want to spend too much time... walking."

Blaise rolled his eyes, clearly amused. "You don't have to play it up. We both know what you were doing. And Parkinson's not even here to make a scene about it."

Draco fell back onto one of the black, leather couches and sighed. "I know it's just... well, what would you do in this bloody situation?"

"Whatever I wanted," he smirked. "That's always been your downfall, mate. You care too much about what people think. Just do whatever the bloody hell you want and tell everyone else to shove off."

Draco forced a smile. "But it's not that simple. If it were someone else... anyone else... it wouldn't be such a big deal. You know what she is..."

"To be honest, Drake, I wouldn't rightly care if she was a hag. You like her, don't you?"

"Of course, but..."

"And obviously you care about her, at least enough to want to put that Weasley wanker in his place."

"I do, Blaise, but..."

"Then I don't see the problem," he said shortly. "You like her. She likes you. That's all the convincing a normal person would need."

Draco raised his brow. "Are you saying I'm not a _normal_ person?"

"I'm saying you care too much what people think, that's all," Blaise said, gazing off into the distance. "You asked me what I'd do if I were in your situation: I'd probably spend every day of the break _walking_ and get lost more than once, just to see where I ended up. You probably wouldn't even see me until the start of next term, to be honest."

Draco shook his head. "I can't do that. The more time I spend with her, the more attached I get. It's already hard enough to stay away from her. If I spent every day with her, what would happen when the term started? I bloody hell can't be seen around the castle with her, but I wouldn't want to keep sneaking around after curfew."

"There you go again," Blaise rolled his eyes, "saying you can't be seen with her. You _can_ be seen with her, you just don't want to. And why not? Because you care what people will say, what they will think."

Draco scowled, knowing Blaise was right. Blaise was usually right, and he hated him for it. Why couldn't Draco be as open-minded and accepting as his best mate?

"So I should do what I want?" he asked for clarification. "And to hell with everyone else?"

"Precisely."

"And if you don't see me again until the start of the term?"

"I might worry if you start missing meals, but I won't blame you. Speaking of meals, I'm starving. Let's go to dinner.

...x...x...x...

"Hermione still mad?" Ron grumbled as Harry and Ginny stepped into the compartment and closed the door behind them. "Probably found somewhere else to sit, hasn't she?"

Harry and Ginny exchanged curious looks.

"Hermione didn't get on the train," Harry said carefully.

Ron's eyes flicked up to his and he stared for a moment, trying to judge if Harry was bluffing. Apparently he wasn't. "You mean, she's staying here over the break and didn't tell any of us?"

"It seems so," Ginny said, before taking a seat across from her brother.

"Blimey, she must be really angry. Neither of you tried to convince her to come with us?"

"I tried," Ginny lied quickly. "But she said she'd rather spend the break here."

Ron slouched in his seat, his arms over his chest, and pouted. Sure, he and Hermione were fighting, but he at least figured they could work it out and he could talk sense into her Christmas break at the Burrow.

"Do you know if Malfoy is staying too?" he asked, biting his bottom lip.

Harry raised his brow. "I didn't check the list."

Ron's eyes flicked to Ginny who shrugged innocently. "No idea."

...x...x...x...

Rather than sitting at their house tables for dinner, the handful of students that were left at Hogwarts joined at a single table in the center of the Great Hall for their meal. Hermione was one of the first to arrive, followed by a few Hufflepuffs and a Ravenclaw. She sat at the end of the table, hoping silently that Blaise and Draco might take the hint and join her, and she was not disappointed. Ten minutes after she arrived, Blaise strolled into the hall, Draco hot on his heels. Upon seeing Hermione, Blaise smiled and took up a seat beside her. Draco, whose eyes flashed temporarily with uncertainty, sat across from them and glanced nervously down the table, all the while chewing the inside of his cheek.

"Hey, Granger!" Blaise said warmly. "Or should I call you Hermione?"

She smiled slightly. "Whichever."

"Don't mind if we sit here do you? After all, you're by yourself."

"And you've already taken your seats, so I'm assuming even if I said no, you wouldn't leave."

This made Draco smile.

"You assume correctly," Blaise said, filling his plate.

Draco glanced from Blaise to Hermione, not sure what to say. Blaise seemed to be carrying on easily with her, making her laugh with his slightly corny jokes, but perhaps he was doing it all for Draco's benefit. After all, if Blaise could talk to her in front of the other students, maybe it would be a tiny paving stone for Draco to follow. However, Draco was so consumed by this thought that he completely missed something Blaise had said to him and he was now receiving expectant gazes.

"Erm.. can you repeat the question?" Draco asked.

Blaise laughed. "I said, 'That bird's already dead, so there's no use to keep stabbing it'."

Draco looked down at his plate, which he had absentmindedly filled with chicken, potatoes, and greens. He had obviously mistaken his knife for his fork, and he was repeatedly stabbing the chicken with his knife as he thought. His cheeks flushed slightly and he exchanged utensils.

"I was just making sure," he joked.

Hermione smiled sympathetically at him. It was more than obvious that he was nervous, but Blaise was trying his best to keep the conversation going. For that, she was grateful, but she would have been content to just sit in such close proximity to Draco without saying a word as well. The fact that they were sitting at the same end of the table was a huge start.


	18. Christmas

Despite his attempts to reign in his thoughts, Draco's mind ran rampant throughout dinner. He found it strange that no one was staring down the table at them or even paying them any attention at all; After all, he was Draco Malfoy and he was sitting across from the most famous muggleborn at Hogwarts, Hermione Granger. Shouldn't this have seemed strange at least to the Slytherins? Before he knew it, dinner was ending and the students were heading back to their common rooms for the night. He had only eaten about half of his food and had tasted even less considering how nervous he was.

Hermione stood to leave before him and Blaise and bid them goodnight. Draco had mumbled something incoherent and watched her go, feeling an unexpected urge to run after her.

"We can go too," Blaise said encouragingly as he watched his best mate stare after Hermione.

Draco nodded. "Yeah."

Blaise hurried to catch up with Draco, who was walking briskly across the hall, and almost ran into him when he stopped in the middle of the entryway. Hermione's figure had just disappeared at the end of the corridor and Draco swallowed hard, his mind reeling.

"I'll see you in the common room," he said under his breath as he turned to look at Blaise.

Blaise smirked approvingly. "Enjoy your walk."

Draco walked briskly down the hall after Hermione, his heart pounding maddeningly in his chest. He wasn't exactly sure what he was doing, but it involved catching up with her and talking to her one more time before heading back to the Slytherin common room.

"Hermione!" he whispered when he caught sight of her. Thankfully, she stopped in her tracks and turned around, eager to see who it was that had called her name.

Draco felt slightly relieved when he saw a smile grace her face.

"You could have told me to wait," she whispered as he caught up to her.

"I, erm, didn't want to say anything in front of Blaise," he said, his cheeks slightly flushed.

"Well, what did you come all this way for?"

Draco opened his mouth and then closed it again. What _had_ he come all this way for? Was it just to see her one more time before bed that night or was it to hear her voice? Was it to kiss her or hold or hand or just to ask when he could see her tomorrow?

"I... I came to walk you back to Gryffindor tower."

She raised her brow. "Really? How very chivalrous of you."

They started off down the corridor together and Draco felt his pulse quicken the way it always did when the two of them were alone. He felt like he had a lot to say considering he had sat through dinner almost completely silent, but his tongue failed him. He thought about reaching out and taking her hand, something he would have done without a second thought had they been in the Room of Requirement or the Gryffindor common room, but he stopped himself. He couldn't risk someone seeing them. Not yet.

"Are you alright, Draco?" she asked as she caught his eye. He had been watching her for sometime, hardly paying attention to where he was going.

"I'm fine," he said flatly. "Just thinking."

"About?" she pressed.

He took a deep breath. "I wish I knew. At the moment I feel like I've taken a bludger to the head and all my thoughts are fuzzy and unfocused. All I know is that you're in them."

She blushed. "You know, talking usually helps one sort out their thoughts."

"You want me to talk to you about _you_?" He raised a brow. "And I thought I was conceited."

Hermione laughed. "That wasn't exactly what I meant. Have you talked to Blaise?"

"He knows enough. Blokes don't typically sit around discussing their feelings the way you females do."

"Well, maybe that's your problem."

He smiled and shook his head. "Are you in a hurry to get to sleep?"

"No, but I hadn't planned on going to the Room of Requirement." She blushed.

"Neither had I," he said, stopping in front of a classroom door. He pulled on the door and found it unlocked and after checking to see if anyone or Peeves was inside, he gestured for Hermione to follow.

"What are we doing?" she asked curiously as she stepped into the classroom. The door closed softly behind her and she gazed around; She had never had class in this particular room before and there was no way of knowing what subject was taught in here.

Draco turned on her and closed the distance between them, brushing her hair out of her face and pressing his lips firmly against hers. He suddenly felt relief, as though he had been waiting to kiss her for a very long time, and now the wait was over.

_Is this how it will be every day?_ he thought. Would he spend his time simply waiting for another opportunity to snog Hermione? Would he drag her into every abandoned classroom he could find, or would he eventually give up and snog her in the corridor? His heart fluttered nervously as he continued to kiss her, pulling her into him.

"We could have gone back to the common room," Hermione whispered.

"It was too far away."

She smiled against his lips and continued to kiss him, no longer interested in getting back to the common room. She would have kissed him all night if they hadn't heard Filch patrolling the corridor and hurried out before they could be caught.

...x...x...x...

Hermione and Draco spent most of their time together in the Gryffindor common room during the first week of Christmas break. Draco insisted that they go to the Room of Requirement for more privacy, but Hermione assured him that the common room was fine; No one who happened upon them would give them a second thought. Occasionally, when they decided to stroll the corridors for something to do, they walked with plenty of space between them and drifted off to rarely traveled hallways to avoid being seen. Blaise and Draco also continued to sit with Hermione at mealtimes, which she enjoyed.

Hermione was so caught up in spending time with Draco that she had almost forgotten about Christmas entirely. When Christmas morning came she found her Christmas presents at the foot of her bed and went through them excitedly. Mrs. Weasley had sent her a tin of baked goods that made her mouth water, and Harry had gotten her some glittering quills and a journal that only revealed what was written to the owner. Ginny had gotten her a red sweater with matching earmuffs and her parents had sent her a few muggle books. She ate one of the muffins Mrs. Weasley had baked and got dressed, pulling on her sweater from Ginny. She planned to go find Draco and wish him a Happy Christmas.

She stepped through the portrait hole and found the corridor completely empty. One of the nearby paintings, a group of old wizards around a table, was singing a chorus of Jingle Bells as she headed toward the Great Hall; One of them, she wasn't sure which, was extremely off key. She smiled and hurried passed, eager to escape.

"Happy Christmas!" one of the men in the portrait called after her.

"And the same to you!"

The corridors were completely deserted as far as Hermione could tell; Surely everyone was still opening presents or sleeping. She finally ran into someone on the third floor, and her heart skipped a beat.

"Draco," she breathed, surprised and happy to see him standing there. "Where are you going?"

"To deliver a gift," he smirked and held out a small, wrapped parcel. "This is for you."

Hermione's cheeks immediately flushed as she took the box.

"But... I didn't get you anything," she whispered.

He shook his head. "Don't worry about it."

Embarrassed, Hermione pulled the paper away to reveal a thin, black box. She opened it skeptically and found a gold necklace inside; The pendant was in the shape of an owl and it's eyes were rubies.

"It's so pretty," she said, pulling the necklace out of the box. The red gems caught the lantern light and glinted as she held it.

"It was going to be green and silver, but I figured Gryffindor colors were more suiting," he said, scrunching his nose.

Hermione smiled. "Besides, a green and silver one might have been a little too obvious, don't you think?"

"Maybe a bit."

"Come to think of it, I do have a present for you," Hermione smirked.

"What is it?"

After glancing down the corridor to make sure no one was coming, Hermione closed the distance between her and Draco and kissed him. She had expected him to step away after a brief second considering how much he disliked kissing in corridors, but he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close.

"Happy Christmas," she said. She was still in the circle of his arms, their forms pressed together; Gazing up into his gray eyes, she saw his mouth partially curled into a smile.

"What do you want to do today?"

"First I want breakfast," she grinned. "Then I'm all yours."

The Great Hall was decorated as beautifully as the front of a Christmas card, and even though she had been staring at the decorations for a few weeks, Hermione found them all the more breathtaking that morning. It may have had something to do with Draco buying her a Christmas present. It also may have had something to do with the fact that before heading downstairs, Draco had offered to hook the necklace around her neck so that the owl perched just above her heart.

Blaise was already in the Great Hall and he smiled when he saw Hermione and Draco approach, a decent gap still between them.

"Happy Christmas, Blaise," Hermione said as she took her seat.

"Happy Christmas," he answered. "Did you get anything decent?"

She smiled. "This sweater, and this necklace, and some books."

"Go figure," Draco snorted.

Hermione pursed her lips and ignored him.

"And yourself?"

Blaise smirked. "Some clothes and food from home and Drake got me a box from the Weasleys' joke shop."

Hermione's eyes flashed to Draco. "I thought you hated the Weasleys."

"Mainly that oaf that hangs out with Potter," he shrugged. "Besides, the twins are rich now."

She rolled her eyes and served herself breakfast while Draco and Blaise talked. It felt strange, spending Christmas without her parents or Harry or the Weasleys, and their absence weighed on her as she ate. She would normally be opening presents with her parents or waking up to the Burrow smelling incredible, but here she was at Hogwarts to spend time with Draco. She shook her head; This wasn't the first time this had weighed on her mind since the Hogwarts Express left for Christmas break, and it wouldn't be the last. She certainly was risking a lot to spend time with Draco, but so far it was proving to pay off.

After breakfast, Draco stopped Hermione outside the Great Hall.

"Do you want to go for a walk?"

"Isn't that what we usually do?" she answered mockingly.

"Ha. I meant outside," he explained.

"Sure. Do you want to meet back here after I get my coat?"

He nodded. "See you in a bit."

Hermione hurried back to the Gryffindor common room, her adrenaline pumping. She laid out two of her favorite coats and stared at them for a long moment, trying to decide between them. She finally decided on the chocolate brown one, and pulled it on, along with her earmuffs from Ginny, a hat, a scarf, and her warmest boots. She dabbed on a bit of makeup and hurried back downstairs to find Draco waiting for her in the entryway.

He was wearing a black coat and hat which made his white hair appear luminescent.

"Ready to go?" Hermione asked cheerfully as she pulled on her gloves.

"Just dreading the cold," he smiled.

The grounds were covered with several inches of snow and looked like a freshly frosted cake. The air was frigid, but at least there was no wind. They made their way away from the castle with no particular destination in mind, leaving behind deep footprints in the frozen blanket.

"It's so pretty here when it snows," Hermione admired.

Draco shrugged. "It's nice."

They drifted off along the side of the castle, out of sight from the front of the school, and Draco caught Hermione by the hand. He laced his gloved fingers with hers, making her blush. Out here there was a smaller chance of anyone seeing them, so it didn't bother him as much to touch her.

"So, what made you want to come outside?" Hermione asked.

"Fresh air is always good," he said. "Besides, we've spent enough days in front of the fire, don't you think?"

"Did Blaise not want to come?"

He scoffed. "Missing him?"

"No," she scowled. "That's not what I meant."

"I know what you meant. And I'd just rather be alone."

"Are you not worried about someone seeing?"

Draco pressed his lips together firmly. "Not out here."

The walked a while longer, the space between them growing smaller and smaller until Draco's arm was around her. Hermione didn't mind; Not only did she love being close to him, but he provided additional heat to keep her warm. They stopped on the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest at a place that overlooked the Black Lake and Hermione transformed a boulder into a small bench.

"That's impressive," Draco said as he carefully took a seat to test it. "Perhaps I should pay more attention in that class."

Hermione smiled and joined him. "Perhaps you should."

Draco slid over to eliminate the gap between them and put his arm around her shoulders. His heart jumped when she leaned over, curling into him, and placed her head against his chest.

"Are you cold?" he asked.

She shook her head.

"Are you enjoying yourself?"

Hermione glanced up at him and found their faces only inches apart. She should have been used to it by now, considering how many times they had snogged, but she still got butterflies.

"Yes," she said, hardly more than a whisper.

Draco hesitated for a moment before leaning forward just enough that his lips brushed hers. He felt a shock of static that started at his lips and charged his body with adrenaline, pushing him to deepen their kiss. He felt Hermione's gloved hand on his neck and her hot breath against his skin as she sighed.

He pulled away just as his heart skipped a beat and met her gaze again.

"Happy Christmas," he said.

She smiled, her cheeks now very red from a combination of the cold and excitement. "Happy Christmas, Draco."

...x...x...x...

It was late, probably around midnight, and Draco couldn't sleep. He was staring up at the canopy above his four poster, thinking about Hermione; She seemed to be the only thing he thought about these days. Images from their time in the Gryffindor common room, and the times they ate together in the Great Hall, and their walk around Hogwarts on Christmas crept into his mind. Could that really be the same girl he had treated so badly over the last five years? Was she really the same know-it-all muggleborn whose teeth he had made grow ridiculously large and who had punched him in the face? The same girl he had thrown a spider on in Potions class just a few months ago? The more time he spent with her, the more disconnected he felt to the past; He knew it happened, but it hardly seemed possible.

"Blaise," he whispered before he knew what he was doing.

Unsurprisingly, no one answered.

"Blaise," he said, this time louder. "Are you awake?"

He heard the shuffling of blankets. "I am now, mate. What's wrong?"

"Nothing. Well, something..." Draco said, fumbling hopelessly with his words. "I've been spending a lot of time with Granger."

"I've noticed," Blaise yawned. "What about it?"

"I can't stop thinking about her," he said awkwardly. "I can't even bloody sleep."

"Does she know that she keeps you up at night? And that you're holding your breath until you see her again?"

Draco groaned. "Please don't quote Celestina Warbeck at me. I'm serious. I don't know what to do."

"There's nothing you can do, mate."

"What do you mean?" Draco said, his heart plummeting.

Blaise rolled over in his bed. It was too dark to see him, but Draco imagined him staring in his general direction. "I mean, if you love her there's nothing you can do... besides tell her."

"L-love?" Draco sputtered. "Who said anything about _that_? I just said I can't stop bloody thinking about her."

"Because your in love, mate. Face the facts."

Draco opened his mouth to argue, and then closed it. Could that be what he was feeling? Love? He had never loved a girl before, or really anyone for that matter. It was such a foreign feeling, and he hated not understanding what it meant. He knew he cared for Hermione, and that he enjoyed spending time with her, and that he liked to snog her and hold her hand and shag her, and that when he was away from her he wanted to be with her... He also knew that seeing her face made him smile, and that touching her even briefly gave him butterflies, and that he wished there was some way for them to be together without having to worry about what everyone else thought...

"Bloody hell," Draco said. It suddenly seemed clear to him the validity of Blaise's words. How was it that he had never seen it?

"Told you," Blaise laughed. "Now go to sleep lover boy."

Draco rolled over and buried his face in his pillow willing himself to sleep. He was still thinking about Hermione when he slipped into unconsciousness.


	19. The Three Broomsticks

Draco could hardly believe what he was doing, but he'd already made it to the seventh floor so it appeared there was no turning back now. He had been pacing the corridor in front of the entrance to the Gryffindor common room for at least fifteen minutes. It wasn't that he had forgotten the password; He wasn't sure if he should go through with his plan.

_Bloody hell,_ he thought as he stopped in front of the portrait for a third time. He must have gone completely mad. He opened his mouth to speak the password and closed it again just as the portrait swung open in front of him. For a moment he wondered if the Fat Lady had finally gotten tired of watching him walk passed her portrait, but he saw Hermione emerge from the portrait hole a second later. His eyes bulged, and she seemed just as surprised to see him.

"Draco?" she said, as though she couldn't believe it. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I obviously didn't come to admire this hideous portrait."

The Fat Lady scoffed. "Well, I never!"

"I wanted to ask you... something," he said. Hermione waited and he sucked in a sharp breath. "Do you want to come to the Slytherin common room with me?"

Her brow shot up in surprise. "Are you sure.. We can stay here if you want?"

He shook his head; He was losing his nerve. "I thought a change of scenery would be nice, but if you don't want to..."

"I do!" she said quickly. "I'm just... surprised, that's all. Of course I do."

He forced a smile and gestured down the corridor; She fell into step at his side and they made their way toward the dungeons. Hermione glanced over at him occasionally, analyzing the serious look he had on his face. She wanted to ask him what was wrong, but she thought she already knew the answer. The Slytherins that had stayed over the Christmas break would obviously see them together if they happened to be in the common room.

"We really don't have to do this if you don't want to," Hermione whispered, tucking a loose strange of hair behind her ear.

"I..." Draco started and exhaled deeply. "This is what I want."

"Are you sure?"

He said nothing, but nodded.

Hermione had never been in the Slytherin Common Room, but she knew where the entrance was from her second year. Draco hesitated for a moment outside the entrance and looked down at Hermione, losing himself in her dark brown eyes.

"I doubt anyone will say anything but..." he said, but then faltered.

Hermione smiled reassuringly. "If I've learned anything from you these last six years, it's to not let people get to me."

Draco frowned. "Unfortunately I haven't had the same practice, so I might hex someone if they say anything."

"I don't mind," she promised.

He forced a smile and spoke the password, which immediately caused the door to swing open. Hermione was immediately taken aback by the Slytherin Common Room. Everything was either green and silver or black marble, and it was not nearly as cozy as the Gryffindor Common Room. There was a lit fireplace on the opposite wall, but the room still seemed cool. Two Slytherin boys, neither of whom Hermione knew, were sitting on a black leather couch in front of the fireplace.

"Where's Blaise?" Hermione asked timidly, gazing around the room. Draco was usually more relaxed whenever Blaise was around; Being alone with Hermione in public made him uneasy.

He shrugged. "He wouldn't tell me where he was going; I'd imagine he went to see that girl from Ravenclaw he's grown fond of."

They stood there for an awkward moment before Draco gestured for her to follow him and they headed off toward a door to their left. "This way," he said.

Hermione followed silently, glancing back at the two boys on the couch; One of them raised his brow as they walked by, but he said nothing. As they slipped through the doorway, Draco closed the door behind them. They were in a small room with five four-poster beds, all with silver and green bedding; The curtains on the beds were green and silver as well. Thankfully, all the beds were empty.

"This is where I sleep," Draco said, gesturing to the bed in the far corner.

Hermione walked slowly across the room and ran her finger experimentally over the sheets; They had to be the finest sheets galleons could buy because they felt like liquid silk.

"Impressive," Hermione said. "Did you bring me here just to show me your bed?

Draco's cheeks flushed slightly and he shook his head. "Well, it wasn't the only reason. But there wasn't anyone in the common room when I left."

"Am I allowed to sit on it?" Hermione asked skeptically as she gestured to the bed.

"Unless you plan to levitate above it," he smirked.

Hermione took a seat on the edge of his bed. He joined her a moment later, only leaving a tiny gap between them, and brushed her hair off her shoulder.

"I appreciate you bringing me here," she smiled, "to the common room. I know it's a big deal for you."

He nodded. "It's going to take some getting used to." He leaned over and met her lips with his, softly at first.

"Are you not worried that someone will come in?"

"I hadn't planned on doing anything that would merit a lot of privacy," he explained. "Besides, Blaise is the only other bloke in our year who stayed over the break, and he'd get a kick out of seeing us in here."

Hermione blushed as Draco pushed her back onto the pillows, which were easily the most comfortable pillows she had ever felt, and kissed her.

"There's something I wanted to ask you," he said uncomfortably. He ran his fingers along her jaw and gently over her lips. "Do you remember when we took the Elixir of Euphoria?"

"Of course," she said, tingles pulsating through her body as Draco drew on her neck with his fingers.

"I asked you if you were in love with me?"

Hermione blushed and nodded after a moment.

He stared down at her for a long moment, taking in the features of her face. His heart was pounding hard in his chest and he could feel the nerves overtaking him; If he didn't hurry up and spit out what it was he wanted to say, he'd lose his nerve. But if he did say it, there was no turning back.

"Hermione, I..." he started and took a nervous breath. "I never thought I'd feel this way about anyone, especially not you. I... I care a lot about you, and I hope you know that."

Hermione's cheeks flushed. "I know."

"I don't know what will happen when everyone gets back from the break, but I just want you to know that I'm trying," he nodded, still staring down into her brown eyes. "I'm trying to not let it bother me."

"That's all I ask," she said, running her fingers through his hair. "If you really care about me, then we can find a way to make things work."

"It's more than that though," he said, shaking his head. "I cared the first time Weasley made you cry and I wanted to pounded him into the floor, but now it's stronger. When I kissed you in Hogsmeade I told you I hated you, and that I wanted to hurt you but now... I want to make you happy. I think... I think I love you."

Her heart skipped a beat and her hand froze midway through Draco's hair. He looked almost as surprised as she was at the words that had just passed his lips, and he waited for her to say something.

"Draco..." she whispered. "Do you mean that?"

Instead of answering, Draco leaned down and pressed his mouth against hers. He let his weight press her into the mattress and he kissed her, hard and slow, his tongue dancing against hers as her hands made their way over his shoulders and down his chest.

"I mean it," he whispered as he cupped his hand against her face. "I love you, Hermione."

Just then the door open and Draco jumped. Hermione expected him to put distance between them or do _something_ but he just laid there on top of her and glanced across the room at Blaise's figure. At first Blaise didn't notice them, his eyes focused solely on his own four poster, but as his gaze slid across the room he froze.

"Drake, I didn't know you were coming back here," he said. "I'm sorry."

"We were just talking," Draco said, rolling lazily off Hermione and laying beside her on the bed.

"That's exactly what it looked like," Blaise assured him sarcastically. "If you two want I can leave."

"It's alright," Draco said, pulling Hermione against his chest. "I said everything I wanted to say."

"Good," Blaise said as he jumped into his bed. "Because I love being a third wheel."

"What happened to the girl from Ravenclaw?" Draco asked.

"Eh, I lost interest."

"Meaning she has a boyfriend now?"

"No, it means I lost interest." He sighed. "Guess I'll have to wait until the rest of them get back from break."

Draco smiled and lifted Hermione's chin, catching her mouth with his. She felt her stomach flip excitedly as his lips moved against hers for a moment; When he pulled away, she could feel her lips aching for more.

"What are you two going to do until dinner?" Blaise asked.

"Probably just this," Draco said, running his hand down Hermione's arm and back up again.

"If it's alright with you, I think I'm going to take a nap," Blaise said, and Hermione heard him shift in his bed. "Don't worry about waking me up. I bought some Impenetrable Earplugs from the Weasleys' shop."

"I'll wake you up for dinner," Draco assured him.

After several minutes they heard snoring and Hermione laughed.

"He falls asleep pretty fast," she admired. "Are we going to stay here while he sleeps?"

Draco shrugged. "He wasn't kidding about those earplugs. The other day we were trying to wake him up and Goyle set off a bunch of fireworks under his bed; Blaise didn't even flinch. But I wasn't planning on making much noise anyway."

When dinner rolled around, Draco shook Blaise awake before they headed to the Great Hall. They had made it out of the Slytherin common room and were turning down another corridor when Draco slipped his hand into Hermione's, lacing their fingers together and making her heart skip a beat. She looked over at him curiously, and he met her eyes for a brief second. She was certain that he would let her go before they reached the Great Hall to avoid being seen, but as they reached the entryway and turned into the Great Hall, she only felt him tighten his grip on her hand.

Instead of sitting across from her, Draco took a seat at Hermione's side with Blaise across from them. Blaise said nothing, but merely smiled the entire time, and although they received curious looks from a few of the students, no one said anything.

...x...x...x...

"I've been thinking," Hermione said suddenly.

She, Draco, and Blaise were all sitting in the Slytherin common room watching two younger students play Wizard's Chess.

"Do you ever stop thinking?" Draco said jokingly.

Hermione stuck her tongue out at him. "I want to go to Hogsmeade before the break is over."

"Sure let's go," said Blaise and at the same time Draco asked, "Why?"

"Because who knows when we'll be able to go again," she said before lowering her voice, "together?"

Draco bit his bottom lip. "You have a point. Do you want to go, Blaise?"

"I'm always down for beer... I mean, a trip to Hogsmeade. When do you want to go?"

"Why not now?" Hermione asked. "We still have a few hours of daylight left."

Blaise and Draco exchanged looks.

"Meet us in the entryway in half an hour?" Draco said, looking at Hermione.

Half an hour later, the three of them were all bundled from head to toe and were standing in the entryway ready to go. Draco led the way, stepping his way carefully through the snow in the courtyard and almost slipping on a patch of ice.

"Bloody hell," he grumbled. "Why do I let you talk me into these things?"

"It's my superior argumentative skills," she smirked.

He rolled his eyes. "The sooner we get there the better. I already can't feel my face."

"Heads up, Drake!" Blaise hollered just as a snowball crushed against Draco's back.

Draco turned around, a vengeful look in his eye, and stooped to scoop a handful of snow. He squished it into a ball and threw it at Blaise, who ducked at the last second; The snowball hit Hermione in the chest.

"Draco Malfoy!" she screamed. He took off into a sprint, Blaise hot on his heels, and Hermione fought to catch up.

By the time they got to Hogsmeade everyone was partially wet from melted snowballs and out of breath. Hermione's cheeks were pink and numb from the cold, and as they stepped into the Three Broomsticks she was immediately overwhelmed by the heat. They found an empty booth, Draco letting her slide in first before pulling off their hats and scarves.

"My hands are freezing!" Hermione sat as she tucked her hands in her pockets.

"I have several things that are freezing," Draco said under his breath, "but I can't exactly warm them in public."

Hermione snorted as the barmaid walked up and they all ordered a butterbeer. Draco rested his hand on Hermione's thigh beneath the table, which would have made her blush, but her face was already red from the cold.

"That was fun," Blaise said as the drinks arrived. "Cold, but fun."

"See," Hermione said to Draco. "Not all my ideas are bad ones."

He smirked. "Most of them, but not all."

"Can you believe that classes start next week?" she asked.

"No," Draco said, "and I'd rather not think about it for obvious reasons."

"I only say that because I normally would have started studying by now," she continued, sipping her butterbeer. "But I haven't opened a book this entire break."

"I wonder why?" Blaise said, raising a brow.

"Be careful, your know-it-all is showing, Hermione," Draco said.

She huffed.

"I'm kidding," he said, finding her hand beneath the table and lacing his fingers with hers. "Well, not really, but I'm sorry, alright?"

"You're forgiven," she said, rolling her eyes. "But only because my decisions are being influenced by this wonderful beverage at the moment."

He smiled.

"Who is that?" Blaise asked, craning his neck to look across the bar. Hermione stood and peered over the top of the booth and saw an attractive girl in a blue coat. She had shoulder-length black hair and dark eyes.

"She doesn't go to Hogwarts," Hermione said taking her seat again.

"But I wish she did," he said. He finished his butterbeer in a few large gulps and sat his empty glass down on the table. "I'm going to go find out."

As Blaise disappeared across the bar, Draco scooted closer to Hermione. He rubbed his thumb gently across the back of her hand and smiled when she looked up at him.

"What are you thinking about?" she asked.

"Everything. Monday is going to be extremely disappointing," he said.

"I know. But I've enjoyed all the time we got together, so thank you."

He leaned over slowly and kissed Hermione's lips. He would miss kissing her whenever he wanted to, and holding her hand, and being close to her. He tried not to think about how things would change on Monday when the rest of the school returned, but he couldn't help it. However, he was, as Hermione had suggested, more than grateful for the time they had had together over Christmas break. He was grateful for Blaise's acceptance and constant pestering that encouraged him to do what made him happy.

He kissed her until he heard Blaise take his seat across from them and he looked up suddenly.

"She's German," Blaise said, his eyes bright. "She's here on vacation visiting her grandmother."

"What's her name?" Hermione asked.

"Amalie. She looks even better up close, Drake... _not_ that you would be interested. I just thought I'd point that out."

Draco laughed. "So what happened?"

"I offered to buy her a drink, but then her boyfriend showed up," he sighed.

"Why are you so excited then?"

"I might have slipped him a Puking Pastille."

Sure enough, from somewhere on the opposite side of the bar, Hermione heard the horrible sound of someone retching followed by a splash and she squeezed her eyes closed.

"That is so disgusting."

"Well, who's up for another round?" Draco asked, pushing away his empty glass.

...x...x...x...

The night before the Hogwarts Express returned was bittersweet for Hermione. She had gotten so used to kissing Draco, or holding his hand, or hugging him whenever she felt like that it was hard for her to imagine what the following day would be like. Would she be able to ignore him in Potions or walk by him in the corridor without meeting his gaze? Could she handle it if he pretended to hate her in front of everyone else?

They were crawled up on the couch in the Gryffindor common room, Hermione staring absentmindedly at the crackling fire. They still had an hour until curfew, but it felt like their minutes were dwindling quickly.

"What's wrong?" he asked when he heard her sigh.

"Just thinking."

"I know what you're thinking about," he said, brushing her hair away from her face.

"What are we going to do, Draco?" She had only asked him at least a dozen times and he hadn't had an answer for her. "Can we pretend to be friends, at least in Potions?"

"I don't want to have to hurt your Weasel friend if he says anything to you," he said softly. "This time I doubt I'll be able to stop myself."

"Maybe if he sees how happy I am, he'll get over it?"

"You must have forgotten how much he hates me," Draco laughed. "I could give you flowers and he would think they were venomous."

Hermione sighed. "It's not fair."

Draco hesitated for a moment. "Do you love me, Hermione?"

She sat up so that she could meet his eyes. "Yes. You know I do."

"Then we'll make it work," he promised, pressing his lips to her forehead. "I don't know how, but we will."


	20. The Students Return

As much as she was dreading the start of term, and not being able to spend time with Draco, Hermione was excited to see Ginny and Harry. She might have been excited to see Ron as well, but she was still hurt by how he had treated her before the break. She crossed her fingers and hoped that Ginny and Harry might have talked some sense into him, but she wasn't very optimistic.

"'Mione!" Ginny said as she burst into the common room.

With a smile, Hermione jumped off the couch and ran to hug her. "How was your break?"

"Long and boring. It was alright until the day after Christmas, then I was ready to come back. How was yours?"

Hermione fought a smile. "It was great."

Ginny looked like she wanted to say more but Harry had just walked up and hugged Hermione around the neck.

"How have you been, Hermione?"

"Good," she said. "Where's Ron?"

"I think I saw him snogging Lavender in the corridor," Harry said with a shrug. He checked behind them to make sure Ron wasn't there. "He hasn't talked about you all break."

Hermione shrugged. "Maybe he's finally over it... or still really angry."

"I'd like to think the first," Ginny interrupted, "but Ron's been known to hold a grudge."

"Can we head to the Great Hall?" Harry asked, his thoughts turning to dinner.

"Why don't you go ahead, Harry?" Hermione asked. "I need Ginny's help really quick in the dorm room."

Harry looked from Ginny to Hermione skeptically but finally nodded. "Sure. See you in a bit."

When Harry had stepped out of the portrait hole, Ginny raised her brow curiously. "What do you need help with?"

"Nothing. But I wanted to update you on the whole _Malfoy_ situation."

Ginny's eyes bulged and she smiled. "Please do. I wanted to write, but I was afraid Ron might open my mail."

"Let's go upstairs," Hermione said, dropping her voice. "I don't want anyone overhearing."

They hurried up to Hermione's room and Ginny closed the door quickly behind them. She plopped down on one of the beds and waited patiently for Hermione to launch into a detailed story of her Christmas break, which she did.

"Is that the necklace he bought you?" Ginny asked, looking at the chain around Hermione's neck.

She blushed. "Yeah. He said he was going to get it in Slytherin colors, but thought better about it."

Ginny laughed. "Ron would have flown off the handle! So what happened next?"

"We spent all Christmas day together," Hermione smiled. "We made a fire in one of the classrooms on the third floor and stayed there for a while before heading to the Room of Requirement."

"On Christmas!" Ginny exclaimed.

Hermione blushed. "Yes. After Christmas he took me back to the Slytherin common room, which was a first," she continued, telling her about the day Blaise fell asleep with Draco and Hermione in the dorm room.

"He told you he loves you!" Ginny squealed, nearly jumping up off the bed. "Hermione, Draco Malfoy is in love with you!"

"That's what he said," Hermione smiled. She finished telling Ginny everything she could remember about Christmas break, from going to Hogsmeade with Draco and Blaise to sitting curled up in front of the Gryffindor fireplace just the night before.

"So what are you going to do now?" Ginny asked when Hermione was out of breath.

"I don't know," she frowned. "And he doesn't either. I guess we'll just see how it goes. If we have to go back to sneaking around and keeping it all a secret, I guess I'll be okay with that."

Ginny frowned sympathetically. "I'm sorry, 'Mione. I hope everything works out. Maybe he'll decide he doesn't care what everyone thinks."

"Let's not get our hopes up."

Hermione and Ginny headed down to the Great Hall, Ginny continuing to ask questions about Draco under her breath. Hermione enjoyed answering them, finally glad to have someone to talk to about Draco besides Blaise. She enjoyed Blaise's company, but not like Ginny's.

"The way you talk about him, I would never guess in a million years that you were talking about Malfoy," Ginny said, shaking her head.

"I know," Hermione assured her as they stepped into the Great Hall. "He's like a completely different person."

As they made their way to the Gryffindor table, Hermione's eyes flicked across the hall to the Slytherins. She found Draco's splash of white-blonde hair instantly and saw that his eyes were trained on her. Her heart fluttered as their eyes locked for a split second before he looked away.

"Are you okay, Hermione?" Ginny asked. They had stopped walking at some point and Ginny was waiting for Hermione to catch up.

"I'm fine," she said and hurried to catch up. They sat down next to Harry and Ron, and Hermione waited uncertainly for Ron to acknowledge her presence.

"Hello, Ronald," Hermione said flatly.

Ron's eyes shifted up for a moment. "Hey."

Apparently he was still angry, so Hermione turned her attention back to the Slytherin table. Draco's eyes were on her again, unblinking, but this time he smiled slightly when she met his gaze.

"He's looking at you," Ginny whispered.

Hermione smiled and looked down at the table. "I know," she whispered.

"If I didn't know better he's trying to see if Ron says anything to you," Ginny continued.

"Probably," she nodded.

Hermione glanced inconspicuously across the hall throughout dinner, meeting Draco's eyes on several occasions and simply watching him talk to his fellow Slytherins on others. She wanted to see him in the corridor afterward, before everyone headed back to their common rooms, but she doubted that was an option now; There were too many people around. She would have to try her chances in Potions.

...x...x...x...

Classes weren't scheduled to start for a few days, and the time was agonizing for Hermione. The minutes crawled by and she felt like time was mocking her. She tried to occupy herself with studying, and began going through her textbooks cover to cover, but even that wasn't enough to distract her completely. She wondered if Draco was feeling the same way, driven mad by not being able to see her. A small part of her hoped he was.

The first day of classes, Hermione hurried into the Potions classroom and took her seat. She hadn't talked to Draco since before the students got back, despite having seen him on several occasions, and she was dying for him to say something, anything to her. The seat across the aisle from hers was still vacant, and she watched carefully in her peripheral vision for the moment when it would be filled. Harry and Ron joined her at their usual table after a few minutes and the classroom filled quickly. Finally, Hermione saw a set of black robes in the corner of her eyes and she glanced over to see Draco staring intently ahead. His jaw was set and his eyes were hard.

She opened her mouth to say something, but then closed it. If Draco wanted to talk, he would; There was no sense in forcing him into it. She thought she saw his eyes flit over to her for a brief moment, but then they were focused on the front of the room again.

Hermione sighed.

"Good morning, class!" Professor Slughorn said cheerily as he slunk into the room. "Welcome back, welcome back!" He tottered to the front of the room and opened his Potions book to a page he had previously marked.

"We'll just be taking notes today so you can all get back into the swing of things," he smiled. "If you will all turn in your books to page 211, we'll get started."

Hermione opened her book to the designated page and looked over the text. _Shrinking and Enlarging Potions_.

"Now, who can tell me the advantage of a Shrinking or an Enlarging Potion as opposed to using a spell?"

To everyone's surprise, Hermione did not bother to raise her hand. It wasn't that she didn't know the answer, because she did, but her heart just wasn't in the lesson. Her heart was sitting across the aisle from her acting like she didn't exist.

"No one? Ms. Granger?" Professor Slughorn said hopefully.

Harry nudged her gently with his elbow, worried that she hadn't heard the professor, but she shook her head.

"Very well... Although it is preferable to use a spell, because it is much faster and easier than potion-making, knowing how to make either one of these spells can come in handy..."

Hermione glanced across the aisle again and saw Draco hunched over his desk taking notes. With a sigh, Hermione pulled out her own quill and started taking notes as well. By the end of class, she had not managed to meet Draco's eye a single time and she was feeling rather miserable. She packed her things, stuffing her books hastily into her bag.

"Are you alright, Hermione?" Harry asked worriedly as he slung his back over his shoulder.

"I'm fine," she said shortly and turned to leave.

She had almost made it to the door when she heard someone call after her.

"Granger!"

Her heart leaped in her chest as she recognized Draco's voice and she spun around on her heel to see him walking toward her.

"Do you need something?" she asked, still a little haughty after being ignored the entire class.

"You dropped this," he said, holding out a folded piece of parchment. "It's blank, but I thought it might be important."

Hermione reached to take the parchment from him and stared down at their hands; They were so close to one another. If she moved just right, she might be able to brush hers against his without drawing attention to herself. She gave up, realizing she was being foolish, and took the parchment.

"Thank you," she said, looking up and meeting his eyes. Her heart sped up as she focused on the gray of his irises and she almost smiled.

"Oi! What do you think you're doing?" Ron asked as he hurried to Hermione's side.

Draco reluctantly looked up and saw the red head walking toward them.

"Don't get your wand in a knot, Weasel," he snapped. "I was just returning something to Hermione."

"I didn't see her drop anything; You sure it isn't cursed?" he asked hotly. "And since when do you call her _Hermione_? Got tired of calling her Mudblood?"

Draco's eyes narrowed dangerously. "I'll call her whatever I want, Weasel."

Hermione stepped cautiously between them, her back to Draco. "Ron, calm down. He was just giving me back my parchment."

Ron scoffed. "Still defending him, I see? I would have thought you'd learned your lesson by now."

Hermione's cheeks were hot with anger and she pressed her lips together hard, wondering what she could possibly do to make Ron even angrier, to make him regret saying anything. She turned on her heel to face Draco, who seemed surprised, and smiled.

"Thank you very much, Draco," she said in the soppiest, most enamored voice she could manage. She then turned her back on Ron and headed out of the classroom, leaving Ron mystified and Draco with a crooked smile on his face.

Hermione knew as well as Ron that she had not dropped anything on her way out of the classroom, so she presumed it was a note. As she unfolded it in the corridor, she found it to be exactly what Draco had said it was: a blank piece of parchment. She pointed her wand at it skeptically and mumbled, "Revelio."

Immediately, the page began to transform and blank ink began to appear across the page. Her heart thrummed quickly in her chest as her eyes scanned the page.

_I'm sorry I haven't spoken to you these last few days, but you know why. I need you to know that I'm still trying, but every time I think about stopping you in the corridor or saying something to you in the Great Hall, I can't make myself do it. Nothing has changed. I'm just trying to figure out what to do about it._

Hermione breathed a sigh of relief; Her heart was suddenly lighter knowing that Draco had thought about her as much as she had thought about him over the last few days, and that everything between them was still as true as it had been the week before. She smiled to herself as she wiped the page blank and stuffed it into her bag. She would have to write him a note as well and get it to him... somehow.

She headed to the Gryffindor common room to drop off her books and found Ron and Harry already there. She skirted passed them, avoiding Harry's gaze, and slipped up to her room to deposit her bag.

"There you are Hermione," Ginny said as they bypassed one another on the stairs. "Ron's fuming; What happened?"

"Draco handed me something I dropped and Ron went off like an explosive," Hermione said shaking her head. "It's like he's waiting or a fight."

Ginny snickered. "They're both ready for a row, don't you think? I say we corner off a corridor and let them go at it so they can get it out of their systems."

"At least we wouldn't have to keep hearing about it," she agreed.

"Will you walk with me to the Great Hall? I think Harry is still trying to calm Ron down."

Hermione nodded. "I could do a freezing charm on him. That'll get him to cool off."

The girls checked the common room for Harry and Ron, who had already left, before heading down to the Great Hall. Hermione tied her hair up in a bun as they walked and Ginny continued to ramble about Ron's insufferable behavior.

"He really is being a git," she said. "I think he's just looking for attention."

"He's getting attention," Hermione laughed. "And a fat lip if he keeps it up."

"Who do you think would win in a fight?"

"Draco."

Ginny furrowed her brow contemplatively. "Really? He looks kind of scrawny to me."

"Yeah, but I've seen what's under the robes," Hermione winked. "He's thin but all muscle. Ron does have him on height though."

"We could set it up in the common room and sell tickets," Ginny said hopefully. "I'm sure people would pay to see that."

Hermione shook her head. "You're almost as bad as the boys!"


	21. The Library

Christmas break seemed like a distant dream to Hermione as she laid down to sleep, her blank note from Draco laying neatly on her bedside table. She closed her eyes and found her mind swimming with images of him, from his lips to his eyes, to the way he ran his fingers gently along the side of her neck. She shivered thinking about it. Hopefully soon things would be back to the way they were the week before, and perhaps Ron would warm to the idea of her being with Draco. Probably not, but hoping never hurts. She would write Draco a note the next morning at breakfast and find a time to give it to him; If it came down to it, she had already considered slipping up to the owlery and sending it to him during the mail delivery. Smiling to herself, she willed herself to sleep, and found her dreams graced by a blonde prince in shining armor.

Her pleasant mood lasted until the following morning at breakfast. She was discreetly writing her note to Draco, hiding it halfway beneath her Defense Against the Dark Arts book and only partially listening to the conversations fluttering around her. She glanced down at the letter and read it over again.

_I understand entirely how you are feeling and the fact that you are trying means more to me than words can express; It means the world to me. But I want to see you. Truthfully, I need to see you._

She bit her lip uncertainly; It was alright, but she felt like it was too straight to the point. She was about to put the tip of her quill to the parchment against when Ginny's elevated voice caught her attention.

"Would you give it a rest, Ron?" Ginny snapped over her plate.

"I just don't see how she can be so chummy with Malfoy all of a sudden," he answered, his mouth full. "For Godric's sake, he's a bloody prat. Surely she would know that after the hell he's put us through these last few years."

"For your information, Ronald, I am sitting three feet away from you and still listening," Hermione snapped irritatedly. "You don't have to talk about me like I'm not here."

He scoffed. "The only answer you've given me is that you're tired of "acting childish" so you've decided to put the past behind you... or some bullocks like that."

Hermione narrowed her eyes. "Just because you're too immature to do the same doesn't mean it's _bullocks_."

"So now you're saying that Malfoy is more mature than I am?" he gawked.

"I guess I am," she said shortly. "Because it's obvious that he's turned over a new leaf; Perhaps you should take a page out of his book."

"But... how can... that's just..." Ron bumbled along for a moment.

"Let it go, Ron," Harry said, nudging his best mate with his elbow. "You've been going on about this for months now... Don't you think it's time to get over it?"

Ron's ears turned red. "So I'm the only one who has a problem with this, then?"

"Maybe it's for the best that he isn't hurling insults at us every chance he gets; I certainly don't see a problem with it. Besides, it's not like they're dating," Harry laughed. "They're just... friendly."

"'Friends' is an loosely accurate term," Hermione said quietly, willing herself not to blush. She took a drink of water from her goblet and looked uncomfortably at Ginny.

"Face it Ron, you're outnumbered," Ginny shrugged.

"He's still a git," Ron huffed. "And I still hate him. And when he starts showing his true colors again, don't say I didn't warn you."

"Agreed," Hermione said flatly and finished her food.

"Maybe he's just trying to..."

"ENOUGH, RON!" Ginny snapped, making several heads turn in their direction, including Draco's.

Hermione met his gaze across the hall and saw that his jaw was hard, his eyes fiery. She secretly wished he would come over and ask why they were making so much bloody noise; At least that way he would be close by. But she knew better than to get her hopes up. It would have to be something much more serious to force Draco out of his comfort zone and expose their relationship.

Ron closed his mouth and stared down at his plate like he was trying to make it catch fire with his mind. Hermione hoped the fact that he had dropped the conversation meant that he would stop harping on her, but she was still skeptical. He would still probably jump for a chance for a row with Malfoy.

"I'm going back to the common room," Hermione said, pushing her plate away. "Are you coming, Ginny?"

Ginny nodded eagerly and followed Hermione out of the Great Hall.

...x...x...x...

By the next day in Potions, Hermione had perfected her response to Draco's note and she was eager to give it to him. She had stayed up late the night before trying to get the wording right; It should have been an easy task, but there had been so much she wanted to say that she had to keep starting over. She walked to class slowly with the hopes that she would bypass Draco in the corridor, but she had no such luck. By the time she reached the classroom he was already in his seat with Blaise at his side.

Hermione walked down the aisle toward her seat and tossed the folded piece of parchment onto the desk in front of Draco. He jumped, but quickly recovered and snatched it up, hiding it beneath the sleeve of his robe. He turned and continued talking to Blaise as though nothing had happened. With a smile and an intense amount of butterflies, Hermione took her seat and opened her potions books.

"Good morning, good morning," Professor Slughorn announced as he entered the classroom and shut the door behind him. "We've got a big day ahead of us so if you will all get out your books and quiet down, we'll get started."

Hermione glanced across the aisle and saw Draco hunched over the note she had written. It was decently long, nearly half a foot of writing, and she wondered for a moment if she should have left out some parts. She watched Draco's eyes speed over her handwriting, the expression on his face serious and stoic; Finally, when he had finished reading, he looked up and pretended to be paying attention to the professor. He folded the parchment discreetly and put it in his pocket before pulling out his quill and writing something in the corner of his parchment, just large enough that Hermione could read it: _Library after class._

He flicked his eyes over at her briefly to make sure she was looking. She nodded, her heart racing, before turning her attention back to Professor Slughorn's lecture.

_The library_, she thought as she wrote down a list of potion ingredients and measurements. She would finally get to talk to Draco and possibly spend precious minutes with him without being heard or seen. If they were seen, they would say they were working on homework. She smiled silently, her mind racing as fast as her heart, and she wished that the class would hurry up and end.

What was wrong with her? All her life she had been religiously invested in her studies and had never been so eager to be out of class. All this for the sake of a boy. She blushed, and shook her head, but there was nothing she could do. Draco had done something to her, changed something about her, and it was snowballing.

Hermione had all her things packed and ready to go several minutes before the end of class and was the first one to the door. She wanted to put as much distance as she could between her and Draco so no one would suspect them of heading anywhere together, and her heart was fluttering in her chest. It felt like she was walking on air as she passed Madam Pince at the entrance to the library and headed to the quietest corner she could find. She pulled out one of her books, to make it appear she was working, and sat anxiously awaiting Draco's arrival.

She glanced up several times to check the aisle and found it empty, which only made her heart pound harder. She knew that at any moment, Draco would turn the corner, and she wasn't quite sure what she would do. The only thing she wanted to do at the moment was run to him and bury her face in his robes as he wrapped her in his arms and kissed her head. She wanted to feel him close, to have reassurance that their Christmas break together had not been exaggerated or dreamed, but that everything between them had been real. A sudden noise made her jump, but it was just Madam Pince shuffling up one of the aisles to replace a book.

After a few more minutes a shadow appeared at the end of the aisle and Hermione looked up, her eyes meeting Draco's immediately. He checked over his shoulder, making sure that no one was around, before hurrying toward her and pulling her into a kiss. Hermione's knees went weak and she sighed with relief as his arms snaked around her.

"Gods, I've missed this," he whispered and kissed her again, his movements slow and powerful.

They parted after several minutes when they heard the librarian approach again and took a seat together at the table. Draco withdrew his Potions book, opening it to a random page, and tossing it carelessly on the table. At least now, if anyone saw them, they could make a reasonable argument that they were studying together. He then turned to Hermione and grabbed her hand, placing it between both of his.

"Can you forgive me?" he asked.

Hermione furrowed her brow. "For what?"

With a smirk, he answered, "For being a spineless prat."

"You're not a spineless prat. I told you I understand."

But he was not convinced. He shook his head and brought Hermione's hand to his lips. "As usual, you're too kind. Blaise reminds me daily how dense I'm being."

She forced a smile. "As much as I hate to say it, you're being very practical by thinking this out completely. Rash decisions are rarely advantageous."

Draco returned a smile and ran his thumb in a circle across the back of her hand. He stared down at their hands together and felt his chest swell. He no longer felt like a part of him was missing. He didn't feel like he was pretending to be someone he wasn't. Here, in this moment, he was just Draco. And he was happy. And being happy felt pretty nice.

"Why are you smiling?" Hermione asked after a long moment. She hadn't taken her eyes off him since he arrived.

He shrugged innocently. "This feels..." he said before trailing off.

"It does." He didn't have to finish his sentence for Hermione to know what he meant, because she felt exactly the same. "So what do we do now?"

Draco took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "I don't know," he whispered. His fingers were still intertwined with Hermione's and he squeezed her hand reassuringly. "But I'm working on it."

Hermione brushed his cheek with her free hand and leaned forward to kiss him. "I'll be here whenever you're ready."

He froze suddenly, the blood draining from his face, and let go of Hermione's hand a little more harshly than he meant to. Hermione hardly had a second to wonder about his curious behavior before a figure at the end of the aisle caught her eye. Even out of the corner of her eye she could tell that the person had red hair and their mouth was open in awe. As she pushed aside the nervousness forming in the pit of her stomach, Hermione flicked her gaze up and saw Ron standing a few feet from them.

At first, neither of them spoke, but Hermione surprised herself when she broke the silence. "Can we help you find something, Ronald?"

Ron stared blankly for a moment, trying to understand what he was seeing, before his red brows knitted together sharply and his mouth curled into an evil frown.

"What the _bloody hell _are you doing?" he asked, pausing after every word.

Draco, whose back had been to him thus far, turned around and met Ron with a dangerous smirk. "Studying, you git. Not that you'd know anything about that."

Ron's fists clenched at his sides. "It sure doesn't look like studying," he said sharply.

"You interrupted us," Hermione said, finding her voice. "Now, if you don't need anything, Ron, I suggest you leave before you get us all kicked out."

"That's what you're worried about?" Ron asked, not bothering to lower his voice. "Not the fact that you're sitting next to Malfoy? You're not wondering what kind of ulterior motives he could have?"

Draco stood slowly and began gathering his things.

"You don't have to go," Hermione assured him. "He's about to leave... Aren't you Ron?" She flicked her eyes over at Ron again.

Ron's gaze was lethal as he stared at Draco. His ears were almost as red as his hair and his knuckles were stark white from his hands being clenched into fists.

"No," he said. "I'm not."

Draco slung his bag over his shoulder and looked at Hermione sympathetically. "It's alright. You can tutor me some other time," he nodded. "We still have a bit before that paper is due."

With a final look at Hermione, whose cheeks had turned red from embarrassment, Draco turned to leave and found his way blocked.

"Out of my way, Weasel," he spat.

To Hermione's relief, Ron stepped aside and let him pass. She took a shaky breath and stuffed her book back in her bag before slinging it over her shoulder as well and hurrying down the aisle.

"Hermione, wait!" Ron said as she made her way around him. "Wait!" He hurried after her as she made her way out of the library, and calling after her until they reached the end of the corridor.

"Just leave me alone, Ronald!" she said loudly as she turned on her heel to confront him. She had hoped to catch up with Draco before he disappeared, but he was long gone now. Now, the only thing she could do was confront Ron about being a git, and that's what she planned to do. "Why do you have to go and ruin everything?"

He looked bewildered. "Ruin everything? I'd say I just did you a fat favor."

She glared at him. "You did _me_ a favor? Or you did yourself a favor?"

"_You_," he growled. "How would it possibly be a favor for myself?"

"Oh, I don't know, Ronald. Let's think," she snapped. "You finally realized that I might be appealing to other guys, and you're jealous that you didn't think of it first? So, now you want to discourage any guys that I happen to talk to in the hopes that they won't want to pursue me so you can."

Ron stared at her, trying to process everything she had just screamed in his face. "Are you saying Malfoy finds you appealing?"

Hermione growled. "That's not the point. The point is that there will never be anything between us, Ronald, so there's no reason to walk around acting like you own me or that you're trying to protect me. And it's none of your bloody business if Draco finds me appealing or vice versa. Just LEAVE ME ALONE!"

And with that, Hermione turned on the spot and marched off down the corridor toward the Gryffindor tower. She needed to hurry so she wouldn't turn around and go punch Ron in his big, stupid head. As she walked, she halfheartedly checked the corridors for any sign of Draco but she was certain he'd gone back to the Slytherin common room. She had to admit that she was proud of him; He hadn't pulverized Ron like she'd imagined. But at the same time, she was disappointed. Maybe if he had punched him a couple of times, it might have knocked some sense into him.

After leaving her things in her dormitory, Hermione headed down to the Great Hall alone. She had hoped to find Ginny along the way, but she found the corridors unusually deserted. She hurried down a flight of stairs, careful to jump over one that tended to vanish, and heard an unusual noise. It sounded like the shrieks and cheers of group of people, but she was still a decent stretch from the Great Hall. She imagined a group of raucous portraits getting together to drink some of the wine from the vineyard paintings until she rounded a corner and found herself at the back of a modest group of people.

Most of them were screaming, some of the cheering and some of them yelling for professors. They formed a large circle in the middle of the corridor, leaving just enough space for whatever they were watching. Hermione tried to feign disinterest as she pushed her way through the crowd to see what the students were observing, and her heart nearly stopped as she broke through to the front of the crowd. In the clearing, there was a fight going on, which was not unheard of at Hogwarts, but the last two people Hermione expected to see swinging at one another were Draco and Ron.

"Hermione!" Ginny's troubled voice erupted over the crowd. She was only a few steps to her right and looking at her nervously. "Do something!"

Just then, Ron lunged at Draco and took him to the ground, eliciting a round of cheers from the observers. Hermione withdrew her wand quickly and pointed it at the two of them, but her hand was shaking. She looked around anxiously and saw Blaise standing on the other side of the clearing.

"Blaise!" she cried.

He looked at her uncertainly before glancing back to the fight. Draco had just slammed Ron onto the ground and taken a dominant position, which made Hermione's heart jump into her throat. Someone was bleeding, but she wasn't quite sure who. Blood splattered the floor and Draco's face.

A voice suddenly drowned the roar of the crowd and many people jumped in surprise. "OUT OF THE WAY!" Professor McGonagall shouted. "OUT OF THE WAY!"

She broke through the crowd, followed by Professor Snape and Professor Sprout and her eyes bulged in surprise as Draco landed a well-placed punch to Ron's jaw.

"Protego!" she said, pointing her wand at Draco and Ron. Immediately, an invisible shield seemed to form between them, pushing them to opposite ends of the clearing.

"MALFOY, YOU BLOODY GIT!" Ron yelled as Professor Sprout helped him to his feet. "THIS ISN'T OVER!"

"Mr. Weasley, please lower your voice," Professor McGonagall snapped.

But Ron acted as though he hadn't heard her. "KEEP YOUR SLIMY HANDS TO YOURSELF YOU DISGUSTING WANKER! I WON'T LET YOU HURT HER!"

"MR. WEASLEY!" Professor McGonagall barked. "THAT WILL BE ENOUGH!"

Ron sulked and wiped his lip on his shirt. Hermione could now see that he was the one bleeding; Draco had split Ron's lip.

Professor Snape was tending to Draco, who appeared better off than Ron, and Professor Sprout was now ushering people away. Now that the action was over, many students drifted off on their own toward the Great Hall. Hermione stayed behind for a long moment, her eyes trained on Draco. She wanted to talk to him, to see if he was alright, but she knew better. They still weren't speaking in public, even though this fight had more than likely been about them. Uncertainly, Hermione headed down the hall in search of Ginny.

She was waiting for her in the entrance hall.

"Hermione! Are you okay?" she asked, rushing to her.

Hermione forced herself to nod, even though her head felt like it was full of cotton; Her body was numb and she wasn't quite sure what to say.

"You don't look okay," Ginny said, looking worried. "Come on and get some pumpkin juice."

"This is all my fault," Hermione whispered as they headed into the hall. "It's all my fault. What if they get expelled?"

Ginny shook her head. "It's not likely. I'm sure they'll get their fair share of detention, but I can't see Dumbledore expelling them. Draco will probably even get off better than Ron considering he's Snape's favorite."

Hermione nodded numbly, even though she wasn't convinced. Even though she was incomprehensibly angry at Ron, she definitely didn't want him expelled. A few detentions would do him some good, but nothing he could do would ever make her want him expelled from Hogwarts. She took a seat with Ginny at the Gryffindor table and stared down at the empty plate before her.

"Drink something," Ginny encouraged her. "It'll make you feel better."

She shook her head. "I don't think anything will make me feel better, Ginny. All this is my fault; I shouldn't have told Ron off but he found us in the library together."

Ginny's eyes widened. "What do you mean? Ron found you together?"

Hermione nodded. "We told him we were studying, but I don't think he bought it. Draco left in a hurry and I told Ron off. I think he might have went after Draco then."

"I don't think it would have mattered if you told him off or not, 'Mione," Ginny assured her. "Seeing you two together was probably enough to set him off."

Hermione buried her face in her hands and groaned. "Sometimes I think it would be easier to stop this," she whispered. "If I just told him I don't want to be with him, everything could go back to the way it used to be."

"Is that what you want?" Ginny inquired. "Do you want to break up with him?"

Hermione shook her head. "No," she groaned. "But things would be easier."

"Love isn't meant to be easy. It's actually really hard and takes a lot of work," Ginny explained. "Plus, you two can't break up; You're too perfect for each other."

She smiled. "You're right. I just feel terrible that Ron had a go at Draco."

"He did get a fat lip out of it," Ginny smiled. "Maybe that will humble him a bit."

At that moment, Harry sat down across from them making the dishes on the table rattle.

"I don't believe it," he grumbled just as the food appeared before them. He immediately began loading his plate with a variety of foods. "Ron can be such a git."

Hermione looked at him curiously. "Don't you mean _Draco_?"

He shook his head. "Ron and I were headed here and when he saw Malfoy he kind of snapped," he explained, taking a swig of his juice.

"You were there? Why didn't you try to stop them?" Ginny asked shortly.

Harry shrugged. "Honestly, I'm glad he finally got what he wanted. He's gone on about Malfoy for so long, and now he's got a bloody lip and wounded ego to show for it. I wonder what finally set him off though?"

Hermione slowly raised her hand. "That would be my fault."

Seeing the confused look on Harry's face, Hermione quickly filled him in on how Ron had found her and Malfoy in the library and how she had told him off in the corridor afterward. He nodded along, taking the opportunity to stuff his face with food before chasing it with more juice.

"Do you know where they are now?" Hermione asked, her thoughts of Draco.

"McGonagall sent them both to the hospital wing to get looked at," he explained. "But they'll probably be here in a few minutes seeings as the only injury was Ron's lip."

She nodded, feeling a little better, but she wouldn't be truly happy until she saw Draco in person. As she pushed the food around on her plate, she contemplated heading to the hospital wing and asking to see him, but thought better of it. His injuries, if he had received any, were sure to miniscule and he would only be there for a few minutes at most.

Draco and Ron finally strode into the Great Hall halfway through the meal and Hermione's heart leaped in her chest. Ron took a seat at the end of the Gryffindor table, far away from the group of them, and she watched as Draco headed to the Slytherin table to join Blaise. His blonde hair was ruffled and his expression was murderous.

"He doesn't look very happy," Ginny whispered. "You should go talk to him."

Hermione looked surprise. "And cause another brawl? I don't think so."

Harry, unfortunately overheard, and furrowed his brow. "Why would she go talk to him?"

Ginny and Hermione exchanged looks.

"To see if he's alright," Hermione dared, but instantly regretted it.

If possible, he looked more confused. "Do you care if he's alright?"

Hermione blushed. "Well, it was my fault he got into it with Ron, and that was unfair. It would only be polite to see if he's okay."

Harry pushed his plate away and eyed her curiously. Hermione bit her lip nervously, aware that Harry was seeing through her front. "I normally wouldn't intrude into your privacy, Hermione, but there's something you're not telling me," he said, his brow arched. "What is it?"

She shook her head defiantly. "It's nothing. There's nothing," she said. "What would I be hiding?"

Harry looked to Ginny who looked away, and then looked back at Hermione. "What are the both of you hiding?"

"It's Hermione's business," Ginny defended quickly. "If she wants to tell you, that's her decision."

"It's not that I _don't_ want to tell you, Harry," Hermione began. "You're my best friend, but I don't want you to turn into another Ron."

"You think I'm that big of a git?" he asked, looking offended.

Hermione offered a slight smile. "No. Of course not."

"Then what is it?"

Hermione looked to Ginny for comfort before taking a deep breath. "You can't breathe a word of this to anyone, alright? Especially not to Ron."

Harry nodded and leaned forward over the table to hear her if she dropped her voice. Hermione met him half way and whispered in his ear, "I'm seeing someone."

Sitting back again, he looked at her in confusion. "'Mione, what does that have to do with Malfoy..." he said before his eyes grew wide and his mouth fell open. "Please tell me you're joking."

Hermione shook her head timidly, waiting for Harry to tell her off, but he didn't. Instead, he sat staring at her in bewilderment for a long moment. "Define 'seeing'," he finally demanded, his expression unreadable.

"Umm..." Hermione mumbled uncomfortably. She had not planned on getting this far into a conversation with Harry, especially so soon, but here she was fumbling her way through a sticky situation. "We've been spending a lot of time together."

Harry gawked. "You've been spending a lot of time with Mal-"

"SHHHHH!" Ginny hushed him suddenly. "Don't go blabbing it all over the Great Hall, Harry!"

"I'm just trying to get this straight," he said, dropping his voice. "How did this even happen?"

"The Halloween Ball," Hermione mumbled, thinking back to the night that seemed almost years ago.

"But Malfoy wasn't even there," he argued. "I didn't see him the entire time."

"It's not important," Hermione said quickly. "The point is, we've been spending time together and we don't plan on stopping. So, you're either going to accept it or you're not."

Harry stared down at the table in front of him and shook his head. He wasn't sure what to say, especially considering that everything running through his mind was sure to upset Hermione and he didn't want to upset her.

"That's a lot to digest," he admitted. "I'm not going to pretend I'm happy about it, but as long as you're happy, I won't say anything."

Hermione beamed. "I appreciate it, Harry."

Harry met her gaze and forced a convincing smile. "Besides, if I don't say that, Ginny will kill me."

Ginny smiled wickedly. "I'm glad you know that without being told."

They finished their dinner quietly, Hermione utterly ecstatic that Harry had been fairly receptive to her confession. It was a tiny step in the grand scheme of things, but it was a step nevertheless. As she stood to leave the hall, she glanced across the hall and Draco watching her eagerly. He had been waiting for her to get up for a while now, and stood in turn to head out of the hall.

"Hermione!" he whispered as he stepped into the corridor.

She turned around just as Draco was catching up with her. "Draco, I-"

"Come with me," he said, cutting her off.


End file.
